Prometheus Bound Compared To Hesiod

Prometheus, a crafty trickster of a god is known in ancient Greek history for his theft of fire for humankind and accredited with the creation of womankind as a punishment for his trickery. Despite these core descriptions of Prometheus’ character, representations of the god's nature, behavior, and intentions vary greatly depending on the text he’s being described in. When looking at Aeschylus’ play Prometheus Bound and Hesiod's work Theogony, a righteous, friend of humankind is how Prometheus is generally described, in stark contrast to Hesiod’s representation of Prometheus in the Works and Days, where he is presented as a bringer of suffering. This essay will examine how these strikingly contrasting profiles of Prometheus were crafted in each

To begin, Prometheus’ representation in Aeschylus’ Prometheus Bound is one of a righteous individual, defying Zeus, something no other god would do. The play starts with Hephaestus defining Prometheus’ punishment from Zeus, where a commentary on Prometheus’ character is made. After describing the grueling punishment Prometheus is to receive, Hephaestus states “Such is the reward you reap of your man-loving disposition. For you, a God, feared not the anger of the Gods, but gave honors to mortals beyond what was just.” (Prometheus Bound, lines 28-30) Hephaestus’ statement not only makes a commentary on Prometheus’ loyalty to humankind, but she also notably highlights Prometheus’ steadfast righteousness as he fares against even the most powerful god, Zeus. Additionally, we can see how Aeschylus is highlighting the intentions behind Prometheus’ actions, and his ready acceptance of the consequences. Prometheus is not characterized by the consequences of suffering, but by the intentions behind the actions that he is suffering for, and later on, Aeschylus makes it notable that it is those intentions that give him the willpower to face the consequences. Prometheus states “But I, who give all thing, accept the pain. For humans I will never change

Hesiod’s portrayal of Prometheus as a bringer of suffering is made explicitly clear by the very subtitle of his story in Works and Days, adeptly named, Why Life is Hard. The blame for the hardships of life is further placed on Prometheus when Hesiod states “But Zeus got his spleen up, and went and hid how to make a living, all because shifty Prometheus tricked him. That’s why Zeus made life hard for humans.” (Works and Days lines 65-67) We see not only the adjective “shifty” be associated with Prometheus, but also a direct accusation of all of life’s hardships being at the hands of Prometheus and his trickery, a very different portrayal from the works aforementioned. The consequences mankind faces weigh much more in the way Prometheus is viewed than the actions that brought on those consequences. Hesiod ends this section of Works and Days with “The main point to remember is that gods and humans go back a long way together.” (Works and Days lines 127-128) We see here what seems to be a warning about the consequences of human-god interactions where trickery is involved, which may be signaling to Prometheus’ story as more of a cautionary tale. Certainly, we can also look at the varying depictions in the contexts for which they are written. We know myths tend to