In this week’s review, I was going to look at Aeschylus’ “Prometheus Bound.” As I’ve mentioned in my review of Mythos, the story of Prometheus is perhaps one of my favourite Myths if not my absolute favourite, because of all the themes involved and all the questions it raises.
Just to summarise the story, Prometheus, who in defiance of Zeus, gave humanity the gift of fire, has been taken to a remote crag by Kratus (strength), Bia (violence) and Hephaestus whose job it is to chain Prometheus to the rock. Despite his seeming isolation, Prometheus is visited by the ancient god Oceanus, by a chorus of Oceanus’s daughters, by the “cow-headed” Io (another victim of Zeus), and finally by the god Hermes, who vainly demands from Prometheus his knowledge of a secret that could threaten Zeus’s power. After refusing to reveal his secret, Prometheus is cast into the underworld for further torture.
The drama of the play lies in the clash between the irresistible power of Zeus and the immovable will of Prometheus. who has been rendered still more stubborn by Io’s misfortunes at the hands of Zeus. The most striking and controversial aspect of the play is its depiction of Zeus as a tyrant. Hephaestus is shown as taking pity towards Prometheus, and he goes on to state that he hates his craft, wishing that someone else had been given his skill because he doesn’t want to be the one to restrain Prometheus. To which Strength replies stating “All tasks are burdensome — except to rule the gods. No one is free but Zeus.” And I thought that this was quite an interesting perspective because I always assumed the opposite.
Another interesting aspect of the play is the choice of the female character Io. She also explains her path of suffering which is caused by Zeus and they both commiserate one another. And I think this is one of the reasons why she is such a great character choice. They both can share the pain and misery caused to them by Zeus and both end up helping each other. Prometheus gives her hope by telling her where to travel to and a promise she shall give birth to a line of heroes, and it is Io’s progeny who will ultimately be responsible for freeing Prometheus.
In conclusion, whilst the play is not the most action-oriented of the early Greek dramas yet, it is one of the more thought-provoking: Is Prometheus the champion of mankind who opposes all manner of tyranny or is he a dangerous revolutionary who challenges the authority that is necessary to maintain order and justice? In Homeric literature, it had been taken for granted that the consequence of defying the gods was severe and inevitable punishment — e.g Odysseus, Tantalus, Arachne. And so, In questioning the justice of Prometheus’s fate and in demonstrating the wrenching choices Prometheus had to face, Aeschylus produced one of the first great tragedies of Western literature.
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