Aeschylus was a well known Greek tragedian who wrote a trilogy whose first part is "Prometheus Bound". The work is about a myth and it was written in 6 acts.
The main motive is the rage of Zeus caused by Prometheus stealing the fire from the gods and giving it to people. Fire was considered to be the last gift that enabled a perfect life. Zeus decided to destroy the human kind and Prometheus stood against him.
The second book of the trilogy was "Prometheus Unbound" and the third one "Prometheus Fire-bearer" is known just by its title.
The main motive is the rage of Zeus caused by Prometheus stealing the fire from the gods and giving it to people. Fire was considered to be the last gift that enabled a perfect life. Zeus decided to destroy the human kind and Prometheus stood against him.
The plot begins with a conflict and continues with it. As the conflict evolves the author represents to us the sufferings of Prometheus.
The main character is constantly in the center of the plot and his body can't move so his spirit and emotional states reign the plot.
The denouement is hidden in the main character Prometheus who knows who will oust Zeus.
Book Summary
Zeus's servants Kratos/Authority and Bia/Violence take Prometheus to Caucasus where Hephaestus chains him to the mountain. Hephaestus felt sorry for Prometheus even though he knew what he had done.
After finishing his job he went away with the servants and Prometheus starts to mourn his faith. He was in pain and he complained loudly to the earth, the sun, the rivers, the seas and the air about the sufferings he didn't deserve.
Even though it was hard for him to put up with everything he found strength in a gift passed on to him by his mother. He could predict the future. He knew that his sufferings will end and that he just has to endure a bit longer under Zeus's tyranny. Soon the Oceanids came to Prometheus. They showed compassion and they had mercy for him. The Oceanids asked him to explain why he ended up chained to the mountain.
He explained the battle between Zeus and the Titans and how he stood on Zeus's side and helped him in ousting Cronus. After the battle, Zeus wanted to destroy humans and then Prometheus stood against him and now his suffering because of Zeus's rage.
Then Oceanus came and tells him to change his mind and bow down to Zeus and that he will help him to get Zeus's mercy. Zeus didn't want to know nothing about it and he was persistent in his decision.
After Oceanus's departure the Oceanids cry because of Prometheus's destiny but he explains to them that it's all for the people. Io, turned to a cow because of Zeus's wife's jealousy, comes to Prometheus. She asks him to tell her when her sufferings will end since he knew when Zeus will be ousted.
He tells her everything that awaits for her and tells her that if she liberates him no one will ever oust Zeus. Prometheus also revealed that Io's cousin will do it and that Zeus will have mercy for her in Egypt and that he will restore her the human shape she had.
Io went away and the chorus told Zeus to stop with his meaningless answers because something bad is coming his way. Zeus's son paid a visit to Prometheus because he wanted to know what marriage will oust his father from his throne but Prometheus denied telling anything until he isn't free. All of the sudden a great storm occurs and Prometheus falls into the abyss with the mountain.
Genre: tragedy
Time: after World's and human's creation
Place: mountain Caucasus
Theme: Zeus's rage towards Prometheus for giving people the fire and Prometheus being chained to the mountain.
Moral: through the main character Aeschylus points out valuable human's virtues. Prometheus helped people and he was persistent in it even though he was risking his life. He was wise and did everything just because he knew that Zeus would be ousted.
Characters: Prometheus, Zeus
Character analysis
Prometheus - the main character who loved people and saved them without asking for anything in return. He helped Zeus in his battle against Cronus and the forces of nature. He got on Zeus's bad side after helping the people. He is a hero who, even though he was exposed to great sufferings, won't give up on his beliefs. He is a moral winner and even though he dies in the end he wins. Prometheus stayed faithful to himself and his causes until the end. He was brave and didn't fear Zeus.
Zeus: tyrant who wanted to have all the power and his main backings were force and terror. He didn't pick the means necessary to accomplish what he wanted. Prometheus's courage and determination made him angry. He was vengeful, ungrateful and cruel.
Aeschylus Biography
Aeschylus was born in 525 B.C. and he died in 456 B.C. In his time democracy started to rule in Athens and he even glorified it in one of his works. He took part in the battle of Salamis, Plataea and the battle of Marathon. In his tragedy "The Persians" he speaks of the battle of Salamis.
He traveled often trying to expand his knowledge and experience. He visited Syracuse where he was hosted by Hiero who only invited the most prestigious artist. Hiero founded Etna in 476 B.C. and placed his son as the reign there. Aeschylus then wrote and performed his play "The Edonians" and in his second visit he performed "The Persians".
For many Aeschylus was the father of the tragedy. His poems state his love for democratic countries even though he was a conservative. Aeschylus came to a confrontation with many people because of his work "The Edonians" so he spent the last years of his life in Sicily where he performed his plays and died in the end.
He wrote about 90 plays and 70 of them were tragedies. He won 13 times in various competitions and he took his writing inspiration out of heroic stories. His tragedies were also told to be crumbs from Homer's table. Even though the structure of his plays is simple and the character lack a deeper psychological analysis, his style was noble.
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