The Analysis of Prometheus Bound - Essay Example

Clearly, a lot of violence and bloodshed in human history has been the result of devoted faith and confirmed adherence to certain viewpoints (the crusades come to mind as a good example). Yet at the same time, religion and the idea of god is a comforting thought to many people and simply overthrowing that idea is not an easy task nor could be done at the earliest convenience.

It seems that the overthrow demanded and recommended by the noted authority has little to do with the will of God since a person’s free will is not controlled by God in any way. Had Zeus been able to control the will of Prometheus, he would not have had any need to chain him or imprison him in any way. With a simple snap of his fingers, Zeus could have discovered anything he wanted. This shows that a person can revolt against God and the power of God would not extend to controlling his or her free will.

Clearly, there is no reconciliation between the will of Prometheus and the commands given by Zeus. Zeus as the character of God can hurt Prometheus, put him in chains, persuade him, send him messengers but can not get him to bend to his will unwillingly. Eventually, Zeus can even throw Prometheus into the abyss with a lightning bolt, yet he remains unable to control him the way he wanted to. Finally, the character of Prometheus is quite interesting since he appears to be defying Zeus for no apparent reason.

It seems that the defiance is simply for the sake of defiance for he has nothing (for himself) to gain or lose by giving up the information demanded by Zeus. At the same time, he helps Io by giving her some good news about her future. Strangely enough, he seems completely unconcerned about his own future and his safety. The defiance exhibited by Prometheus is quite heroic and one can agree with his description of Zeus as a tyrant. However, I do not agree with the idea presented by Prometheus that Zeus is out to destroy the race of men. Without worshippers, a god would have little else.