Prometheus Bound Research Paper

When one says the name Prometheus, most people recall vague details from the old Greek myth of the titan god who stole fire. Some may have only even heard the name Prometheus from seeing the movie of the same name about space voyagers. However, the most important version of Prometheus' story in literature is the classical Greek play Prometheus Bound by Ӕschylus. It tells the story of Prometheus standing up to Zeus on behalf of humanity. Prometheus endures Zeus' punishments and becomes a hero. Not only is it an entertaining play, but it also illustrates the dangers of tyranny and oppression on society. In this way, Prometheus Bound is an important piece of literature, a major contribution to theatre, and a warning for society. At the beginning of Zeus’ reign, he appeared to be a tyrant when challenged by Prometheus. Zeus, feeling threatened by the human race, wanted to destroy mankind. “Zeus, newly enthroned, had wished to abolish the puny and inadequate race of men and replace them with something better…” (81his greek lit) By teaching mankind the …show more content…
The technical aspects are unusual for his time and Prometheus Bound differs from all his other works. The Olympian god Zeus is depicted differently in the Prometheus story than in any of his other plays. Having an actual date of the play being written causes further debate of the true author. Some have concluded that it may have been written by Euphorion, the son of Ӕschylus. It is interesting though, that these ideas alone would cause one doubt. Considering we only have a fraction of his written work the possibility exists that that he simply changed his style. “One can retort that where we have only seven plays out of an original corpus of more than seventy it is difficult to know what apparent technical anomalies might be paralleled several times over in a substantially larger selection.”