It is said: "There is a fine line between arrogance and confidence." As a leader or ruler, these boundaries may be even more blurred than in normal society. In the plays Oedipus Rex and Antigone, both written by Sophocles, Oedipus and Creon both have episodes of hubris that take control of their judgment and become their downfall. However, the problem is not how they govern, but rather how they deal with the negative effects of decisions after learning all the facts. Furthermore, their pride takes control of them by consuming their emotions and not allowing them the judgment needed to make better rational decisions. The Merriam Webster's Dictionary defines pride as: the feeling of respecting oneself and of deserving to be respected by other people: the feeling of being more important or better than other people (...), and defines arrogance as: exaggerating or being willing to exaggerate one's value or importance often in a domineering way: showing an offensive attitude of superiority: deriving from or characterized by arrogance (…). As you can see, the terms arrogance and pride are interchangeable, just as Oedipus and Creon are in these two intertwined Greek tragedies. In the Bible it says: “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16,18). Whether pride is a character trait or a psychological trait is not clear to this writer. However, one thing is clear: Oedipus and Creon are two rulers who are unable to go beyond their proud limits to make rational decisions for the good of their people, and it represents the definitive end of themselves, their loved ones and Thebes. with this because he was considered sovereign for himself and not for his subjects. We are able to ... middle of paper ... as a dictator what is proposed must be set in stone without wavering because any sight of it shows weakness. In the examples of Oedipus and Creon, neither sought the outcomes that ultimately prevailed. However, neither was able to see beyond the blinding characteristics of pride, arrogance and anger that would see the demise of the loved ones around them as well as the fall from grace that they would both endure. Works Cited "Arrogant". Merriam Webster. Merriam-Webster and Web. November 04, 2013.Mays, Kelly J. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 11th ed. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2013. Print.Peterkin, L. Denis. "Sophocles' Creon." JSTOR. The University of Chicago Press, 2000-2013. Network. 04 November 2013."Pride." Merriam Webster. Merriam-Webster and Web. November 04, 2013."Proverbs 16 KJV." Proverbs 16:18 KJV. Biblical Hub, 2012. Web. 01 November. 2013.