Prometheus Bound
by Aeschylus · Προμηθεὺς Δεσμώτης
Assigned by 2 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- c. 430 BCE, authorship disputed
- Form
- Tragedy
- Language
- Greek
- Length
- Short · 60 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Demanding3 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendAeschylus II, translated by David GreneUniversity of Chicago Press, 2013The Complete Greek Tragedies edition, in the Griffith and Most revision, with the four non-Oresteia plays in one volume.
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The Titan Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods and gave it to mankind along with every art and science, is chained to a rock at the edge of the world on the orders of Zeus. Visited by the sea nymphs, by Ocean, and by Io, a girl turned into a heifer and driven across the earth by Hera's gadfly, he refuses to submit and prophesies that Zeus will one day be overthrown by a son of his own unless Prometheus reveals the secret. Hermes demands the secret, Prometheus refuses, and Zeus hurls him into the abyss. The play's authorship has been questioned since the nineteenth century.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Prometheus Bound are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
