Response to Prometheus Bound Homework

As assigned for class on Monday, I read and interpreted Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound. This piece went through a dramatic tale involving Prometheus, Zeus, and Chorus. In this tale, after Prometheus disrespected Zeus by stealing fire for human beings, Prometheus was punished by being chained to a rock. The only way he would be released from the rock is if he exposed the secret of the marriage. Throughout the entirety of the text, Prometheus' character showed through. More specifically, Prometheus showed the readers that he is very stubborn but also wise nonetheless. He continuously was stubborn to Zeus by not exposing the secret, and was also very taunting to him. As learned from class, taunting and making a God like Zeus upset is not a wise thing to do.

Different themes were found throughout the read which I found to be interesting. The notion of friendship was brought up along with the idea of tyranny, which Zeus encompasses. Prometheus constantly brings up the idea of friendship with Zeus. Hephaestus has trouble binding Prometheus to the mountain because he values his friendship with Hephaestus over Zeus' rule.

The Chorus, despite counseling obedience throughout the play, quickly changes at the conclusion of the story to announce that friendship is a greater value. Furthermore, at least one main reason for Prometheus's punishment is that he values his friendship with human beings above reverence for Zeus. The reason Zeus cannot understand the concept of friendship resides in his self-confidence and the accompanying belief that all must obey his rule. Prometheus's insistence and persistency on the importance of friendship, which is emphasized by the Chorus, suggests that obedience is only secondary. Zeus's tyranny appears as evil and misguided rather than deserved and just. In terms of morality, Prometheus believes it is better to be loved than feared [1].

[1] Aeschylus, and Deborah H. Roberts. Prometheus Bound. Hackett Publishing, 2012.