“What fools”, he thought to himself, as he waited. Waiting took most of his time these days; he’d attempted escape too many times, and not once was he able to succeed. “What was it all for? Why am I here now?”, these questions plagued his mind. He’d only tried to help humanity; Prometheus’ fire was to be a gift, not something hidden away solely for the gods! Everyday that he was stuck here he grew weaker, his body, spiritual and physical, had both felt the consequences of his actions; his flame grew dimmer and dimmer over the years. Zeus. It all came down to him. It wasn’t always this way. “I was the great Prometheus! The sole mention of my name would torch the tongues of those who spoke ill of me!”
“Now look at me…” and as he thought to himself, he’d heard something. His heart began to sink and he braced himself, he thought it was the fluttering of wings yet again. That damned eagle; every time he’d seen it it would remind him all over again, some days he could almost swear it would smirk as it tore apart his liver again, and again, and again. Something was strange indeed however; as he realized he had not heard any fluttering, nor a screech, in fact he was having trouble recalling this noise. As the noise slowly grew louder and clearer, he’d finally remembered the sound of companionship. These were footsteps! “Who’s there!” He yelled out frantically.
There was no reply, the steps stopped altogether. The silence was deafening. His heart dropped once again. “Of course it’s nothing. Who would come for me…” he muttered to himself. Suddenly there was a voice, “Hello Prometheus”. The figure of a muscular man slowly became more apparent from the greenery surrounding him. “Who are you? What are you doing here?” said the titan, heart pounding. “My name is Heracles, I’m here to release you from your chains and ask for your assistance” answered the man. Suddenly, an ear piercing screech rang throughout the wilderness surrounding the two, and the oscillation of heavy wings approaching the two grew nearer and nearer. Prometheus’ began to tremble; however the man before him stood still, calmly observing the situation. “Run boy! You cannot do anything for me. Hide!” Prometheus warned. The man simply retraced his steps, back to the forest from which he came.
Prometheus braced himself. He could see the eagle approaching. Suddenly he saw a spear soar through the air and pierce the heart of the eagle, and it fell to the ground with a thump. The man reappeared, and immediately began to break the chains holding Prometheus. Confused as he was, Prometheus managed to mutter, “Heracles…How can I ever reward you”. As the chains came loose Prometheus began to remember who he was; he could feel the strength course through his body once more; and only one thought filled his mind. Revenge. Prometheus’ fire burned stronger than ever before.
… (To be Continued)
Analysis
The myth that I have written is the interception of several real myths along with certain changes, of course, to make the myth pertain to the option I chose, global warming . However, it focuses primarily on the myths behind Prometheus’ fire. Prometheus, the titan god of fire, was a being that was known to be highly intellectual and a friend of mankind as a whole for a plethora of reasons. Prometheus was actually the creator of humanity; he molded people from clay and brought life to them with the help of Athena's breath. Unfortunately Zeus didn’t quite take to humanity and decided to confine humans to Earth and ensured they were mortal beings. (Hesiod, Theogony 526-8) Prometheus is also credited with helping humanity progress quite a lot on various different levels, teaching humanity different forms of arts and skills .
The myth that I have written begins with Prometheus’ confinement; something that needs a little context. After creating humanity with the help of Athena, Prometheus had a soft spot for humans as Zeus took a lot away from them for simply existing. So in empathy of humanity, when tasked with how sacrifices were to be made for gods, Prometheus pulled a sly trick on Zeus. Prometheus purposely portioned the sacrifice misleadingly, wrapping the best meat in an unappetizing manner while wrapping the bones in a rich and delicious looking fat. Obviously when presented with choosing his portion, Zeus chose the fat wrapped portion, as it appeared a lot more outwardly appeasing than the alternative. In this way, Prometheus was able to give humanity the good portion. However, when Zeus came to realize what had passed he was enraged and took fire from humanity so they would suffer in cold darkness. Prometheus, once again, stepped up to the task for humanity and stole the fire, giving it back to humanity. Finally, to punish Prometheus, Zeus decided to chain him and send his animal (an eagle) to eat his liver. Since Prometheus was an immortal being, his liver would grow back and the eagle would come again. This process would repeat eternally, essentially torturing Prometheus forever. (Hansen, Classical Mythology 32)
This brings us to the beginning of my myth, Prometheus is furious with Zeus; who wouldn’t be after being tortured for centuries on end? One of the changes I made throughout the myth is the origins of the fire itself. Rather than Prometheus stealing the fire away to give to humans; Prometheus gave a part of himself away to humanity, as the titan god of fire. Throughout the myth I’ve written it’s clear that Prometheus has just barely been holding on; and the test of time has taken an immense toll on his strength. His flame “growing dimmer and dimmer over the years” symbolises the piece of himself, the fire that he gave to humanity, was getting weaker and weaker as well. This is a reference to earlier times throughout history where the Earth's atmosphere and surface saw a drastic drop in temperature and sheets of ice and glaciers were plastered all over the Earth.
The next part of the myth I’ve written also calls for a bit of background information as well. The hero Heracles arrives to free Prometheus. In the actual myth, Heracles is sent by Zeus himself, a detail that I’ve intentionally changed in my myth to once again fit the needs of the topic I’ve chosen. In the myth I’ve written Heracles has come of his own accord, knowing of the good Prometheus has done for humanity, and to ask Prometheus for assistance. Heracles is in search of the golden apples of Hesperides, one of the twelve labours he had to complete to achieve immortality. (Hansen, Classical Mythology 45) Heracles throws the spear of Cycnus (son of Ares) and kills Zeus’ eagle, piercing it through the heart. Cycnus was the son of Ares that Heracles had battled and murdered previously, during their battle, Cycnus had almost speared Heracles, but was unable to penetrate his shield.(Hesiod, Shield of Heracles 57 & 314) Heracles himself was a man of humanity, so the spear was meant to symbolise humanity. The eagle is a rather simple metaphor for Zeus’ will, as it is his sacred animal that he’d sent to punish Prometheus daily. Heracles using this spear to kill the eagle was meant to symbolise humanity coming full circle and providing help to Prometheus against Zeus’ will in his most desperate time. After dealing with the eagle and finally releasing Prometheus from his chains, Heracles is meant to ask for Prometheus’ assistance with the golden apples, (Hesiod, Theog. 521, &c., Op. et Dies, 47, &c.) but that is also intentionally disregarded as it doesn’t directly pertain to the point of my myth.
Finally, the most important part of the myth I’ve written comes into play when Prometheus is released after the thousands of years of torture he’s had to endure. As I said previously; Prometheus is in a weakened state and the fire that he’s given to humanity is dwindling, causing the Ice Age on Earth. The myth details that as soon as Prometheus is released from his shackles of confinement, he begins to remember who he was; the titan god of fire! As he’s released, it’s clear to see that the most prevalent thought he’d have is revenge. After enduring torture for so long, of course he would want revenge against Zeus, who continued his relentless punishment even when all of the other gods begged for Zeus to show mercy. It is this rage that drives Prometheus power now, he is furious and can finally feel the energy and power course through his body. As mentioned in my myth, “Prometheus’ fire burned stronger than ever before”. This is a reference to global warming, and is meant to display the origins of global warming, as intended by this aetiological myth. As Prometheus’ fire grows stronger through the rage and resentment he feels, the flame that he gifted to humanity grows unbearably strong as well. Through Prometheus’ clouded judgement he doesn’t realize that he’s currently hurting humanity, the reason why he’s gone through this entire ordeal in the first place.
Bibliography
Hesiod, Shield of Heracles 57 & 314
Hesiod, Theogony 526-8
Homer, Iliad xxiii. 307, 584; Pind. Pyth. vi.50 ; Soph. Oed. Col. 712, &c.
Hesiod, Theog. 521, &c., Op. et Dies, 47, &c.
Hygin. Poet. Astr. ii. 15; Apollod. ii. 5. § 11
Homer, Hymn to Helios 15
William Hansen, Classical Mythology: A Guide to the Mythical World of the Greeks and Romans Oxford University Press, 2005.
Homer. The Iliad. Translated by A.T. Murray Loeb Classical Library Volume 1. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1924.
Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica. Translated by Evelyn-White, H G. Loeb Classical Library Volume 57. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914.
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