Prometheus Bound Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Prometheus Bound - Essay Example As a punishment for this rebellion, the powerful Zeus commanded Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the gods, to bind Prometheus deep in a gorge, in a mountain. Accompanying Hephaestus in this god-given mandate were Kratos and Bia, representing Power and force respectively. After Prometheus is chained in the gorge, he laments about the excessive punishment that Zeus has commanded for him. The Oceanids, the daughters of the Oceanus, the sea God, arrives and start consoling Prometheus. Shortly, Oceanus arrives and offers to go to Zeus to plead with him so as to forgive Prometheus for the rebellion. But Prometheus warned Oceanus that such an action would make Zeus wrath to turn to him, Oceanus. Towards the end of the play, Zeus strikes Prometheus with terrible sufferings, organ devouring eagle that perpetually devours his regenerating liver. In this play, Prometheus is the personification of reason and justice/truth; Prometheus defies the unjust mistreatment of human beings and fights for the common good of human beings. In the process he is cruelly punished by the cruel and tyrannical Zeus. In the face of the power of Zeus, Prometheus is utterly powerless. This fact shows that in the face of tyrannical power, reason is helpless. But despite the cruel punishment, Prometheus did not give up, but continued fighting for the good of human beings. In this play, language is used skilfully to develop the theme of the play. To begin with, in asking Hephaestus to execute his god given mandate to bind Prometheus, Kratos describes Prometheus as a malefactor. As a faithful servant of Zeus, Kratos used this strong term to show the seriousness of Prometheus crime; according to Zeus, Prometheus crime was a very serious crime. Kratos also describes Prometheus as a traitor, this also emphasises the seriousness of Prometheus crime according to the god Zeus. In describing his sufferings after he was bound to the gorge,