Final answer:
Teiresias' role in 'Antigone' is central to Creon's development as a tragic hero. His prophecies and warnings are instrumental in revealing Creon's tragic flaw (hamartia) and prompting his anagnorisis. Teiresias' confrontation with Creon ultimately leads to Creon's peripeteia, fulfilling the criteria of a tragic hero in Aristotle's 'Poetics'.
Step-by-step explanation:
In Sophocles' tragedy Antigone, the character Teiresias plays a crucial role in the development of Creon as a tragic hero. Teiresias, a blind prophet, serves as a source of divine wisdom and a key proponent for the audience's understanding of Creon's hamartia, or tragic flaw. The seer's warnings to Creon about the dire consequences of his stubbornness and refusal to yield are pivotal in bringing about Creon's anagnorisis -- the moment of critical discovery -- which is an essential component of Aristotle's concept of tragedy. He condemns Creon's decision to punish Antigone, foreshadowing the disaster that would fall upon Creon's family. This exchange not only marks a turning point in the plot but also highlights Creon's fatal pride and subsequent fall from grace, fulfilling the Aristotelian criteria for a tragic hero.
Teiresias presents the concept of catharsis by encouraging Creon to recognize his transgressions against divine laws and amend his rigid views. This confrontation forces Creon to eventually confront the consequences of his actions, leading to a reversal of fortune or peripeteia, as his personal losses pile up. It is through the prophetic voice of Teiresias that the element of foresight and wisdom tests the hubris of Creon, reinforcing the play's tragic structure and the downfall of its hero. Sophocles masterfully weaves the character traits and decisions of Creon, with the guiding influence of Teiresias, to fulfill the structure of a tragic hero as explicated in Aristotle's Poetics. As a result, Teiresias greatly contributes to Creon's character arc from a seemingly just ruler to a tragic figure, encapsulating the essence of ancient Greek drama and its moral teachings.