Prometheus Bound

Prometheus Bound Summary | Detailed Summary

The tragic drama Prometheus Bound is based on the ancient myth of Prometheus, the Greek god responsible for bringing fire to mankind. It is part of a trilogy of related plays written in the 5th century BC by Aeschylus, one of the three most famous classical Greek dramatists. Only the first play, Prometheus Bound, survived in its entirety; the second play was preserved in fragments while the third was lost completely. Yet even considered alone, Prometheus Bound is filled with such striking dialogue, principled characters and provocative themes that it has held people's interest for over two and a half millennia.

The audience of Aeschylus's day would have immediately recognized the following characters in the play: Prometheus, the god of Forethought, who often aided mankind; Zeus, the supreme ruler of the gods (who has just ascended to his throne); Hermes, the god of music and persuasion and Hephaestus, a crippled divinity whose talent was for forging metals. That audience would also have known the ancient myth that tells how Prometheus stole fire from the divine realm of the gods and gave it to mortals on earth. By doing so, he directly defied the god Zeus. In retaliation, Zeus ordered Prometheus to be chained to a desolate rock at the end of the world, alone and suffering, for many thousands of years.

The play opens with Prometheus being riveted to a great rock by his fellow god. Once bound in these chains, Prometheus will be fixed in a posture that prevents him from sleeping, moving or relaxing. Hephaestus regrets having to do his duty, and only does the job because Zeus's agents, Power and Violence (who is mute), stand over him and compel him to follow orders. (These two figures are needed by the god Zeus to enforce his authority; they are not divinities but mere symbolic personages.) When Hephaestus pauses to speak of how hard Zeus's heart is, Power impatiently warns him to stop sympathizing with the enemy. Every job is a burden, adds Power, but no one is free except Zeus. Watching closely, Power insists that tight, unyielding shackles be forged around Prometheus and firm spikes put through him. During this whole episode, the tortured god remains utterly silent.

Finally, when the other three leave him, Prometheus calls aloud to the various gods of the sky, earth, ocean and sun. He laments his miserable treatment, and claims it is unjust for one god to punish another. At the same time, these events do not surprise him, since he is able to know the future (i.e., seeing future events is included among his gift of forethought). "I must bear my allotted doom as lightly as I can," he says, fully aware that he cannot escape the powers of Fate. He admits to having secretly passed fire along to mortals by stealing it from the gods and hiding it in a stalk of grass while he transported it. Fire greatly improved the conditions for mankind, and "has proved a teacher to mortals in every art and a means to mighty ends," according to Prometheus. At this point, Prometheus is interrupted by the arrival of the first of many visitors, the Chorus.

Here let us note that the play's dramatic structure is linked to the requirements of staging. Since Prometheus is spiked to a cliff, he must remain immobile for the whole play. All dramatic action results, therefore, from the arrival and departure of the other characters. Three different individuals will visit Prometheus, talk with him and then leave before the next visitor arrives. The Chorus, meanwhile, remains on stage with him the entire time. They witness each conversation and comment upon the meeting afterwards.

This Chorus is composed of many winged, barefoot girls, daughters of the ocean god, Oceanus. They flutter onto the stage, singing and dancing, and speak all together. They let Prometheus know how quickly they came when they heard of his troubles and they complain about the new ruler Zeus, whose inflexible and oppressive authority inspires widespread fear. "He rules beyond the law," they say, and accuse their ruler of wrongly abandoning the old, noble way of governing. Zeus is unpopular and will be overthrown, they predict, but until then Prometheus will suffer.

Prometheus agrees that Zeus is indeed vulnerable to losing his power; furthermore, he claims to know exactly what event will cause the great god to eventually fall from power. Yet he vows never to divulge this secret, under any torture, threat or persuasion, until Zeus sets him free and makes amends for the imprisonment. He predicts that one day Zeus will grow less stubborn and more cooperative, which will eventually enable them to be friends again. Hearing of his secret, the Chorus members grow curious and beg to know more details.

Prometheus then tells them the tale of how Zeus came to power by overthrowing the previous generation of gods, the Titans. The Titans were led by Cronus, Zeus's own father, but they were outwitted by Zeus's generation of gods (the Olympians) and were cast into the pit of Tartarus. Bitterly, Prometheus admits that he even helped Zeus come to power, but he did so only because he'd foreseen Zeus's victory was inevitable. Prometheus adds that Zeus had planned to let mankind die out entirely and fashion a new species to replace them. Somehow, Prometheus intervened and saved human race from extinction.

The Chorus asks if Prometheus ever did anything else for mortals, and he responds that he caused humans to stop "foreseeing their doom" (in the myth, mortals apparently knew the day of their own death, until Prometheus took that knowledge away from them). Now they have instead "blind hopes" and so their short lives are more bearable. The Chorus approves of this gift of ignorance. However, when Prometheus confesses that he gave divine fire to the humans, the Chorus disapproves; this time he has gone too far. At the same time, they feel pity for him in his present situation, since the punishment is quite out of proportion to the crime. They advise him to find a way to break free. Prometheus asks them to stay with him and they promise sit upon his rock and hear his sorrows to the end. They sit down and wait.

Prometheus's first visitor (apart from the Chorus) is the figure 'Ocean,' a god who flies in on a great creature that is half-bird, half-horse. Ocean is both kinsman and friend to Prometheus; both of them are from the older generation of gods overthrown by Zeus. Ocean thinks he is doing something dangerous by opposing the new ruler. He advises his friend to give in, rather than bragging and rebelling. He thinks it's best to keep a low profile around the new tyrant. Finally, he promises to intervene by plead Prometheus's case to Zeus and asking for mercy. Prometheus, however, responds with sarcasm and ingratitude, telling Ocean his help isn't wanted. He recalls the other victims of Zeus's tyrannical and arbitrary power, including his own brother, Atlas (who holds up the earth) and Typhoon the storm-demon. When Ocean realizes that his efforts to help are only enraging Prometheus further, he departs.

Ocean rides away on his bird, and the Chorus resumes singing. They say that all the races of earth sympathize with Prometheus, their benefactor. Prometheus is inspired to elaborate upon the human condition, which was a bleak affair until he intervened. Mortals were plagued by blindness and helplessness before he aided them with forethought. Humans had eyes but still didn't see the purposes of things. They "handled all things in bewilderment and confusion" and were unable to make any plans for the future or any protection against the elements. People couldn't even tell when the seasons would change or figure out the best time for planting crops. The simplest things like building houses, working wood and even remembering things were impossible. Only after Prometheus brought them astronomy and numbers could people finally make calendars, predict the seasons and regulate their crops. He taught them shipbuilding, navigation, and medicine and mining. As the god of forethought, Prometheus made humans "masters of their own thought" and reduced their dependency on the protection of the gods.

The Chorus tells him to look after his own interests rather than those of humanity, given his present predicament. They ask him difficult questions about whether or not his efforts were worth the trouble. What advantage did he gain from helping mankind, those "creatures of a day?" they ask him. It seems he has helped blind mortals for nothing. Why should he suffer so much for mere mortals, when life can be so sweet and full of hope, they wonder. Moreover, why should the plans of blind, ephemeral humans take precedence over the designs of the divine Zeus? Having posed these questions, they recede again into the background.

A second new character, Io, bursts onto the scene. She is a beautiful mortal girl whom Zeus tried to seduce during one of his many romantic escapades. The wife of Zeus grew jealous and revenged herself on Io by changing the girl into a white cow. Then she condemned her to wander the earth for ages while being chased by a stinging gadfly (or horsefly, in some accounts). Constantly on the run, Io has now lost her way and is suffering from fatigue, hunger and dread. She wonders aloud when her troubles will end and begs the heavens for rest, even if it comes as death.

Prometheus recognizes her and introduces himself. Aware that he is the god who has knowledge of the future, she asks him when she will be freed from this curse. At first, not wanting to break her spirit, he refuses to tell her. The Chorus asks instead for details on Io's history, and so the girl tells how Zeus first began appearing to her in dreams, asking her to meet him in the fields at night. Disturbed by this, she told her family and they all consulted the religious oracle (a priestess who tells the future in riddles). The oracle commanded Io to be cast out from her home. Then she was changed into a cow by Zeus's wife and forced to wander the earth. As if she didn't have enough troubles, the fly that torments her everywhere she goes has almost driven her mad.

The Chorus sympathizes and Prometheus decides to tell her about her future. She will be driven through many foreign lands, following the coastline, until she comes to the high Caucasus Mountains. Beyond them, she will find the country of the Amazons, and then she will move into Asia. After long wanderings, she will eventually reach the Nile River. Seeing how far she will have to go, Io interrupts and asks why she should even bother to live anymore. Prometheus says she's lucky if she can do so; he himself is immortal and his suffering will continue until Zeus falls from power. Io asks if Zeus can ever be defeated, prompting Prometheus to tell his secret of Zeus's downfall. It seems to be ordained that if Zeus makes a certain marriage, a son will be born who will overthrow him, just as Zeus deposed his own father. The trouble for Zeus is that he doesn't know which woman is the one who will lead to his destruction. The only hope for Zeus is to make a deal with his captive. If Zeus agrees to free Prometheus, he will then (and only then) reveal the details of this 'marriage-secret.' Somewhat paradoxically, it has also been fated already that Prometheus will only be freed in another way: by a hero who is not yet born.

Now Prometheus has his audience interested in two related questions. When and how will Io's wanderings cease, and how will his own imprisonment end? He continues the story of Io's destiny: she will traverse Europe and Asia, passing monsters like the griffins and the gorgons, and will finally arrive at the Nile River. There she will be returned to her human shape by the touch of Zeus and will bear his son. Her descendents will become a great colony, and one of them will someday set Prometheus free. As soon as Prometheus has finished the prediction, the horsefly returns to plague her. Its sharp sting sends her into a senseless frenzy and she runs away, with no aim and no direction, only trying to escape the unbearable stings.

The Chorus observes the importance of marrying within one's own rank and not consorting with gods as unhappy Io has done. Prometheus repeats his prediction of Zeus's downfall through a certain marriage. Zeus will, he vows, be plunged into shame, ruin and slavery. The Chorus warns that Zeus may take offense at these loud, boastful threats. Prometheus responds that he cares 'less than nothing' for Zeus.

Prometheus's challenge to the heavens does not go unnoticed. The third visitor, the messenger god Hermes, descends. Prometheus insolently greets him as Zeus's errand boy. On behalf of Zeus, Hermes demands the details about the secret Prometheus claims to know. He asks the prisoner to reply in clear terms and no riddles. Prometheus refuses, calls him a 'minion' and tells him to scurry back home. Prometheus refuses to 'crouch before your gods—so new—and tremble.' Regarding the ill-fated marriage, he gives no information whatsoever. Hermes notes that such stubbornness is what got Prometheus chained to a rock in the first place. Prometheus retorts that he prefers his own punishment to running errands for Zeus, as Hermes does. Hermes asks him if it is really better "to serve a rock for eternity rather than be the trusted messenger of Zeus?"

Prometheus vows again that no threat and no inventive torture device will provoke him to tell what he knows. Hermes counsels him as a 'friend' that such an attitude is unwise, needlessly rebellious and against his own best interests. Prometheus firmly responds that Hermes might as well advise the waves. He will not beg for mercy, and his rebellion knows no limits. "I hate this pack of gods," he says, in a famous line. He has been betrayed and punished by the very gods whom he'd helped come to power.

Hermes remarks that stubbornness without wisdom merely makes a person vulnerable and weak. He warns of the terrible additional woes that Zeus will inflict on Prometheus: a bolt of lightning will soon cleave the rock in half, burying Prometheus in darkness. An eagle will be sent to feast upon his liver each day. Before long, Prometheus will yearn for his death. Hermes urges Prometheus to reconsider his position in light of these threats. The Chorus sides with Hermes and advises Prometheus to give up his secret. The sensible answer, they say, is to cooperate with Zeus by telling him what he wants to know. Knowing how much Prometheus cares about his own honor, they remind him that a wrong decision always results in great shame. He may save his pride for the moment, but eventually he will appear a fool if he refuses to cooperate.

Prometheus responds that there is no shame in suffering at an enemy's hand, if there is mutual hate. Come what may, he knows that Zeus can cause him pain but can never kill him, an immortal being.

Hermes thinks Prometheus's grand speeches only prove his own madness. He advises the Chorus to quit standing around sympathetically, as the wrath of Zeus will shortly arrive. Surprisingly, the Chorus refuses to leave, explaining that to do so after all this time would be 'base' and 'improper.' They will stay and bear what they must, honorably. Nothing is worse than treachery and betraying a friend, they add firmly.

Hermes reminds all listeners that he tried his best to persuade Prometheus to relent. When Prometheus finds himself suffering beyond his wildest predictions, he shouldn't blame Zeus or pretend he was ignorant of what was coming, he adds. Such a lack of good sense will trap him in a net of ruin, from which none can rescue him, concludes Hermes.

The negotiations have failed utterly and little more remains to be said. Prometheus's final words simply describe the immense, dreadful storm that he sees brewing: thunder and lightning fill the sky, winds cause the earth and sea to whirl together and the clouds darken. He asks his mother Themis (the Earth goddess) to witness his unjust sufferings. The play ends on this note of suspense and imminent doom. Soon the first lightning bolt will strike Prometheus' rock and send him into agonized suffering.