#prometheus bound

In Prometheus Bound, Prometheus says his mother is either Themis or Gaia, right before saying they're the same person.

"And yet my mother--Themis, call her, or Gaea, she's the same under all names." - Prometheus Bound, Line 211-212

But both goddess and the other identities the ancient sources give of his mother work well with his character.

Themis

Themis is the titan goddess of justice, respected and revered as part of the cosmic order.

If Prometheus is her son, then his rebellion isn't just stubbornness or affection for humanity. Giving fire to mortals becomes a moral act that was right, and perhaps, even divine.

And in The Eumenides, Themis is said to have once possesses Delphi, making Prometheus' prophetic powers another inheritance from her.

Gaia

Gaia is the Earth Primordial and the mother of the Titans.

The play always emphasizes that Prometheus is older than the Olympians, but if he's her son, he becomes one of the elder gods, part of the same generation as Kronos and Oceanus, putting him closer to the usurped than the usurpers.

He and Zeus are then placed on different footing, and their conflict becomes the old world staring down the new one, refusing to back down or admit that its time is over.

Clymene

"Now Iapetus took to wife the neat-ankled mad Clymene, daughter of Ocean, and went up with her into one bed. And she bare him... clever Prometheus, full of various wiles..." - Hesiod's Theogony, Line 507–511

Clymene is an Oceanid and wife of the Titan Iapetus.

If Prometheus is her son, then his relationship with the Chorus, aka the Oceanids, becomes more personal than being mere in-laws. He was born and raised by one of them. He knows them as they know him, making their grief familial rather than merely sympathetic.

And his interaction with Oceanus becomes a multi-generational conflict between a grandfather who compromises to survive and a grandson who would rather suffer for his morals.

Hera

"When Hera was being raised by her parents, one of the Giants, Eurymedon, raped her and made her pregnant. She gave birth to Prometheus. Zeus later married his sister [Hera], and when he found out what had happened, he threw Eurymedon into Tartaros, and hung Prometheus up in chains (he used the fire as a pretext)." - Euphorion, D Scholia to the Iliad:

While this tradition doesn't work with the play, since Prometheus isn't a young god and it takes place early in Zeus's reign, that doesn't mean it is any less fascinating.

Zeus punishing Hera's illegitimate child is an interesting reversal of their roles, as Prometheus is punished not for what he did but for who he is.

And that means Heracles, a son of Zeus, is freeing the son of the goddess who made his life miserable.

Whether he knows it or not, he chooses mercy. And if he did know, then he does what Hera never could: not judging someone for the circumstances of their birth.

Conclusion

As a result, if Prometheus is the:

Son of Themis, he's righteous and just.

Son of Gaia, he's ancient and wise in years.

Son of Clymene, a compassionate family member.

Son of Hera, an outsider marked by birth.

Different mothers, same Prometheus.

Prometheus is the brother of Atlas, who's father of Maia, who's then the mother of Hermes by Zeus.

So while this was framed as an old Titan defying the younger Olympian regime, it's just Prometheus roasting his great-nephew for being a bootlicker.

Hermes arrives treating Prometheus like some stubborn fossil, and Prometheus treats him like an immature kid still wet behind the ears and parroting Zeus' authority.

Just finished Prometheus Bound, and out of all the plays by Aeschylus I’ve read so far, this one is my favorite.

The play opens with Prometheus being chained as punishment for giving fire to humanity, and he later reveals he did so fully aware of what fate had in store for him. As he says:

"But what am I saying? I knew what lay ahead, knew everything beforehand. Nothing strange will ever come to pain me. I must endure my destined lot, certain that the power of Necessity is too strong to be broken." - Lines 106–110

What makes his act so powerful is that he chooses who he wants to be within the boundaries of fate, exercising free will and deciding that his suffering will be worth it.

The play also draws a clear distinction between rebellion and resistance.

Rebellion defines the gods' history. Uranus was overthrown by Kronos, who was then overthrown by Zeus. Each ruler took power by force, and grew paranoid knowing the same can happen to them.

Prometheus, however, stepped outside that cycle. His theft of fire wasn't to overthrow Zeus, but to give humanity a chance to survive under a new regime that initially sought their demise.

Even more importantly, he didn't have to reveal existence of knowledge that could threaten Zeus. He could have allowed events to unfold without interference, but he withholds it as leverage for his eventual freedom. Revolution wasn't his endgame. Just resistance.

And that's where Zeus' characterization becomes especially interesting.

Despite never being seen, play presents Zeus as a tyrant whose authority is felt through the suffering and fear he inspired.

Prometheus is chained to a rock. Oceanus urges him to be submissive. And Io is driven into madness and wandering by Zeus's desire, to the point that death itself feels like an escape.

It differs from the Zeus of the Oresteia, who is the bringer of justice and order. But this is a young Zeus—whose taste of victory is still fresh and rules harshly because his position is still unstable. As Hephaestus puts it:

"... for the mind of Zeus cannot be turned by please. Harsh is the ruler when rule is new-begun." -Line 34-25

Prometheus Bound is the only surviving play of a trilogy called the Prometheia, but the later plays have Prometheus and Zeus reconciling, with the Titans having been freed and being the chorus for the second play.

Prometheus Bound is the only surviving play of the lost trilogy called the Prometheia, and later fragments and summaries have Prometheus and Zeus reconciling. And the second play has the Titans being the chorus.

This ties together as an evolution of Zeus' character—from an usurper who sees every act as rebellion, to a just king who rules with might and law.

Prometheus' suffering is unimaginable. He was bound, pierced, devoured—yet humanity progressed past his initial plan.

Part 1

Prometheus Bound (between circa 1611 and circa 1612 / 1618), Peter Paul Rubens

Prometheus Bound (1640), Jacob Jordaens

The Torture of Prometheus (between 1620 and 1648), Gioacchino Assereto

The Torture of Prometheus (c. 1646-1648), Salvator Rosa

Prometheus (17th century), Theodoor Rombouts

Prometheus Bound (17th century), Luca Ferrari

Prometheus (the second half of the 17th century), Luca Giordano

Prometheus freed by Hercules (between 1781 and 1785), Johann Heinrich Füssli

Prometheus chained to the rock (before 1865), Carl Rahl

Prometheus (1869), Gustave Moreau

I have never encountered an admirer of Io like @galusandmalus so here is a quote from Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound: It's Prometheus giving instructions to Io🥰

Kinda feels like this fresco (like I actually know what is this about😉):

Roman fresco from 1st century B.C. found in the temple of Isis in Pompeii, owned by the National Archaeological Museum of Naples.

I was about to quote Ovid's Metamorphoses, but this was better in my opinion. However, I cannot leave this post without showing these magnificent medieval piece:

Compositions from different copies of Ovide Moralisé attributed to Chrétien Legouais. Painted on parchment ca. 1300.

Not only in love with the compositions itself but also with the gold calligraphy. Btw why Hermes' syringe is a huge flute? LOL

Here is a woman who has had the unwanted lustful advancements of Zeus thrust upon her. She prevents herself from being given to him as long as possible, but a mortal (and a young woman during this time period) cannot deny a god or the will of her father (who changed his own mind in fear of Zeus), especially not the one who sits on the throne of Olympus as King, and she is forced to him. But then her form is changed into that of a cow - a heifer - brought on by the anger of Hera - and plagued with a maddening spirit, forced to wander the world. It is just such an interesting discussion of tyranny and the complete lack of or the limitation of choice that one has - god and mortal - the the context of a tyrannical system, where power is held solely by one person and wielded with fear.

Io is at the whims of a god, she cannot meaningfully stand up against Zeus. But Hera is also positioned (along with the other gods we see in Prometheus Bound) as being unable to meaningfully stand against Zeus as well. Now this is not to say that the actions of Hera are meant to be read as blameless, but more so that, when positioned against a tyrant, anger will get deflected onto the party who is not at fault. Hera's anger at Io could be read as her misplaced anger at Zeus, and knowing that standing up directly against a tyrant is ultimately fruitless, she redirects it onto a person who can be punished for the deed done by Zeus, as such indirectly punishing Zeus as well, depriving him of the object he desired. Hera's rage is potent and causes direct harm, but the rage, while cruel and unjustly set against Io, was only present due to the wrongs of her husband. As such Hera is positioned both victim and perpetrator. She is the manifestation of the continuing cycle of violence and tyranny begun by Zeus. Io, as a result of this, is left listing between the powers of beings far beyond her. She did not ask nor want to be pursued by Zeus, but because of him and the position he holds among the gods, she is forced to suffer.

Her suffering is then paralleled with the suffering of Prometheus. A being, a god much more powerful than her, who knows what has been and what will be, made equals in suffering through the power wielded by Zeus, a statement that all who fall below Zeus will face punishment at his hand, and will be brought low equally and indiscriminately in his anger, or in the anger he begets in others. A harsh power structure that involves all but one falling under the yoke of servitude. In this structure, the actions of those under Zeus cannot fully be their own. Hephaestus must lash Prometheus to the rock and like Hera perpetuates Zeus's tyranny. Io's father must give up his daughter to Zeus, against his will yes, but more importantly against her own.