Prometheus Bound: Of Tragedy, Melancholia and Justice - Book Report/Review Example

Prometheus Bound: Of Tragedy, Melancholia and Justice Greek mythology being among the earliest reenactment of human society has been remarkably influential in the world of story telling. People of all ages have been gripped, amused, saddened and altogether entertained by the larger than life adventures of its heroes and its plots which revolve around timeless themes such as jealousy, revenge, love, rage and so on. The characters and scenes are magical and surreal, but the message being imparted finds universal resonance. The play "Prometheus Bound" is one such example. The play "Prometheus Bound" started with Kratos, Bia and Hephaestus taking Prometheus to his prison: a rock in Mount Caucasus where he was banished by the almighty Zeus. Among the three tasked to execute the job, the dejected reluctant Hephaestus was the sympathetic voice. He wailed at the sight of a god about to be mercilessly chained, punished for his deep compassion for mankind and yet he would not dare be involved: Nothing lets you further But forcibly to bind a brother God In chains, in this deep chasm raked by all storms I have not courage. This verse, speaking as it does of the anguish and despair of Hephaestus, rings loud throughout the entire play. It captures the melancholy of Hephaestus, weeping for a "brother God". Indeed, it speaks of the predicament that Prometheus has found himself in, once powerful, but now disempowered - suffering from the perceived transgression of delivering fire to mankind. In Greek mythology, Hephaestus was a son of Hera and the God of Fire. Unlike the beautiful gods of Olympus, only he was portrayed to be not only deformed from birth but also lame. He was however also a god who supported mankind. He was a peace-loving god, who was said to make dwellings, furnishings as well as weapons. He is considered patron of the handicrafts and protector of the smiths. In the play, he was shown trudging after the other two carrying nails and chains and although agonizing the fate of Prometheus, was decidedly helpless. In a sense, he represents the everyman: flawed, moral, compassionate, but weak and unable to stand up to the forces that be. After being chained, anguished Prometheus calls on nature to witness his suffering and among those who headed his calls were the Oceanids and later Oceanus. To them, Prometheus recounted the rebellion of Zeus against the Titans. Zeus, son of Cronus, dethroned his own father. Cronus had learned that one of his sons was destined to reign the universe so protecting his seat, he had ordered his wife Rhea to get rid of his sons right after birth. Zeus had survived this ordeal, and when he was grown, summoned his brothers and sisters to rebel against their father. With the help of the Giants and Prometheus, his cousin, Zeus successfully ruled the universe. Contrary to what might be expected from once allies, Prometheus, who was often referred to as the Rebel Titan, was no friend of Zeus. Prometheus was rather fond of playing tricks on Zeus. His last betrayal and the one that warranted such harsh punishment was that he stole fire and brought it to man, whom he had created, educated and loved. Like Hephaestus, Oceanus, who came as a friend and sympathizer, was resigned to the fact that the only opportunity for Prometheus to gain freedom was if Zeus was removed from his throne. That is why it can be said that Hephaestus' lamentation rings all throughout the text. Hephaestus and Oceanus, though not reproachful, were representations of conformation, grudgingly submitting themselves to the power of Zeus. Oceanus vowed to appeal to Zeus although it was eventually agreed the god of gods was not one who was easily moved and that he was one whose vengeance was severe. Prometheus advised Oceanus to stay out of the conflict so as not to be involved. As an act of empowerment and defiance, he then prophesied that at the right time, Zeus would find himself in danger and be forced to befriend him. While chained, Prometheus, often called the savior of man, outlined everything that he had done for mankind. Some time right after Zeus usurped his father's power, the Giants who first populated the earth, rebelled. They did not however succeed and the earth being rid of monsters became a place where mankind could live. By now all was ready for the appearance of mankind. Even the places the good and the bad should go to after death had been arranged. It was time for men to be created. (Hamilton 71) The name Prometheus meant forethought. This god who was said to be wiser than the other gods had a brother named Epimetheus whose name on the other hand meant afterthought. Unlike his brother, the latter was impulsive, thought less of his actions and later regretted even doing them. Epimetheus, prior to the creation of man, had given all natural gifts to animals until there had been none left for mankind to have. So it was written that it had been Prometheus who created mankind, shaping them in the same form as the gods. He pleaded Athena to breathe life into them. Men however had not enough faculties as animals to survive hunger, the night and the cold. Prometheus hence taught them how to survive: "Senseless as beasts I gave men sense, possessed them of mind." (Hamilton 72) As Kevin Spacey in the movie Superman Returns aptly puts it, Prometheus brought technology to the people the most striking of which was the gift of fire. Upon hearing what Prometheus had done, the Oceanids reproached him for his frailty. Mankind for whom he had sacrificed was in no position to help him then: And, oh, beloved, for this graceless grace What thanks What prowess for thy bold essay Shall champion thee from men of mortal race, The petty insects of a passing day (Part 8) In spite of it, the chained god insisted that it was his will and he would not renounce it: "And freely do I here acknowledge it. /Freeing mankind myself have durance found." In the middle of the Oceanids' chiding and Prometheus' foretelling of his freedom, IO entered the scene, who appeared to be a heifer with horns on her head. She was disoriented not knowing what land she had wandered into and wailed that a gadfly was pursuing her not to mention the ghost of Argos. IO was the daughter of Inachus with whom Zeus had fallen in love. Greater though than his love was his fear of Hera's jealousy. One day, he had covered the earth in a very dark cloud in order to hide IO. Unfortunately for him, Hera had instantly suspected that it was her husband's doing. After having ordered the clouds away, Hera had found Zeus standing beside a lovely heifer, which was of course IO disguised. Her beauty and Hera's jealousy had brought about her this misfortune. As foretold though, this woman would have her vengeance.It would be from the descendants of IO that a hero would be born and he would free Prometheus from being chained: "For, of her sowing, there shall spring to fame[his] bow Shall set me free." After listening to IO's story of how Zeus had fallen in love with her, how her father had been forced to drive her out and everything that she suffered after which, Prometheus revealed his prophesy. IO is destined to wander aimlessly to various lands, one of which, The Ionian Sea, would be named after her. Her suffering would end at the Nile, where Zeus would transform her back to human form and give her a son: "She will bear to him a child, /And he shall be in might more excellent /Than his progenitor." He was referring to Hercules. (Hamilton 72-76) Prometheus having declared that Zeus' own son would one day dethrone him, Hermes son and messenger of Zeus threatened Prometheus into revealing the character of this son. Prometheus, the hero, savior of man, in his final act of rebellion cried: none of these Shall bend my will or force me to disclose By whom 'tis fated he shall fall from power. Tragedy and Frailty Aeschylus started his career earlier than Euripides supposedly upon the order Dionysus2 who appeared to the playwright in a dream. He was ordered to write tragedies, a task he succeeded very easily and in the years that followed he came to be referred to as the Father of Tragedy. At the time, the theater had only begun and the presentation consisted mostly of entertaining combinations of poetry and dance. It was big departure from what was usually shown when Aeschylus introduced on stage tragedy so realistic, women were said to have miscarriages while watching. Aeschylus witnessed in Athens the fall of tyranny, a political upheaval that clearly influenced his third surviving play Prometheus Bound, which focused primarily on the plight of Prometheus and his prophesy about the fall of Zeus. The character of Prometheus in Greek mythology was a symbol of many great things-wisdom, compassion, and rebellion-but it was the god's defiance even amidst torment that was highlighted in the play. Prometheus was a prominent figure in mythology being the son of a Titan and being known to be the wisest of them all and yet he relinquished the comforts of his status because of his deep compassion for mankind, never denouncing them even at the hour of his suffering. Greek mythology scholars have noted the religious resonances in Prometheus Bound. Bates (1906) has observed: The Prometheus Bound is the representation of steadfast endurance under suffering, and, indeed, the immortal suffering of a god, banished to a desolate rock over against the earth-encircling ocean. This play nevertheless takes in the world, the Olympus of the gods, and earth the abode of man, all scarcely yet reposing in a state of security over the precipitous abyss of the dark primeval powers of Titanism. The notion of a deity delivering himself up as a sacrifice has been mysteriously inculcated in many religions, as a confused foreboding of the true one, but here it stands in most fearful contrast with consolatory revelation. For Prometheus suffers not on an understanding with the Power that rules the world, but in atonement for his rebellion against that power, and this rebellion consists in nothing else than his design of making man perfect. Thus he becomes a type of humanity itself, as, gifted with an unblessed foresight, riveted to its own narrow existence and destitute of all allies, it has nothing to oppose to the inexorable powers of nature arrayed against it, but an unshaken will and the consciousness of its own sublime pretensions. Juxtaposed to Greek Mythology, the Bible would appear to be wrapped in a magnificent cloud of purity and sacredness. The Bible by its very nature required compliance and reverence The atheists might argue that the God, particularly of the Old Testament, was tyrannical as well. And the stories are unified by one theme: The goodness of God is supreme and it shall triumph over evil always. So while the crucifixion of Jesus, who humbly accepted his fate, exemplified God's great love for mankind. The chaining of Prometheus was a rebellion against a tyrant god and a call for justice for himself and IO whom Zeus had turned into a cow. Lacking a strict moral standard of what is right and wrong, justice in the Greek context meant vengeance. And very often in mythology, where there is a rise and fall of heroes, the wronged is eventually avenged. So though weak deities like Hephaestus gnash their teeth and lament their "brother god" in melancholia, the pure of virtue triumphs in the end. References Bates, Alfred. (1906)The Drama: Its History, Literature and Influence on Civilization. London: Historical Publishing Company. Hamilton, Edith. (1999) Mythology. New York: Warner Books. Read More