Prometheus Bound: Analysis of Setting
"Prometheus Bound" is a tragedy attributed to Aeschylus that explores themes of punishment, rebellion, and the human condition through the story of the Titan Prometheus, who is bound to a mountaintop as a consequence of defying Zeus. The setting primarily takes place on an unnamed mountain, posited to be in the Caucasus region, which serves to highlight Prometheus's isolation from the world and the divine authority of Zeus. The ocean, represented by the god Oceanus, plays a significant role in the narrative, illustrating the contrast between Prometheus's plight and the detachment of the gods, as Oceanus visits but ultimately refrains from supporting him.
Additionally, references to Argos provide a cultural and geographical anchor for the audience, connecting them to a mortal character, Io, who shares a similar suffering under Zeus's wrath. Through Io's lineage, the play foreshadows a eventual redemption for Prometheus, represented by Heracles, suggesting themes of hope and justice in the face of tyranny. The descent to Tartarus at the play's conclusion further emphasizes Prometheus's tragic fate and the ultimate isolation intended by Zeus. Overall, the setting in "Prometheus Bound" enhances the emotional weight of the narrative while inviting the audience to contemplate broader themes of suffering, resistance, and the quest for freedom.
Prometheus Bound: Analysis of Setting
First produced:Prometheus desmōtes, date unknown (English translation, 1777)
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Tragedy
Time of work: Antiquity
Asterisk denotes entries on real places.
Places Discussed
Scythian mountaintop
Scythian mountaintop. All the action of this play takes place atop an unnamed mountain on the edge of the Greek world—probably in the Caucasus mountains in what is now Armenia. The remote location emphasizes the isolation of the Titan Prometheus, who is bound to this mountain as punishment for his crimes against the chief god, Zeus, as the ruler of the universe.
Ocean
Ocean. Mythical great sea that the ancient Greeks believed surrounded a saucer-shaped world. In this play, Ocean is personified in the god Ocean(os), who visits Prometheus on his mountaintop but refuses to ally himself with his fellow Titan. As the daughters of Ocean, the chorus of Oceanids are also identified with this body of water. Unlike their father, the Oceanids decide to cast their fate with that of Prometheus.
*Argos
*Argos. Ancient Greek city located in the northeastern part of the Peloponnesian Peninsula, in which the play’s only mortal character, Io, was born. Aeschylus’s references to this unfortunate woman’s homeland provided his Greek audience with a geographical and human framework for this otherwise exotic play. Through Io and her Greek heritage, the audience may not only sympathize more strongly with Prometheus, who, like Io, is a victim of Zeus, but they can also take pride in the play’s prediction that Io’s descendants will eventually return to Greece and that one of them, Heracles, will eventually free Prometheus from his bondage.
Tartarus
Tartarus. Greek underworld, to which Prometheus and the chorus descend at the end of the play. The location is intended by Zeus as further punishment of the recalcitrant Titan and the completion of his isolation from the world.
Bibliography
Grene, David. “Introduction to Prometheus Bound.” In Aeschylus: The Complete Greek Tragedies, edited by David Grene and Richmond Lattimore. Vol. 1. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1969. Reviews eighteenth century criticism of Prometheus Bound and compares it to Aristotle’s Poetics (c. 334/323 b.c.e.). Discusses problems with the play, including an episodic plot, the improbable and extravagant characters, and the uncouth diction.
Kitto, H. D. F. Greek Tragedy: A Literary Study. London: Methuen, 1970. Dates Prometheus Bound in the category of Old Tragedy. One chapter offers a detailed examination of the play.
Kitto, H. D. F. Poiesis: Structure and Thought. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1966. Discusses what is known as Farnall’s Dilemma: that Aeschylus was writing about Zeus in a derogatory sense and that the playwright should have been prosecuted for blasphemy. Because he was not, he could not have written Prometheus Bound.
Podlecki, Anthony J. The Political Background of Aeschylean Tragedy. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1966. Discusses similarities between Prometheus Bound and the Oresteia (458 b.c.e.).
Stanford, William Bedell. Aeschylus in His Style: A Study in Language and Personality. Dublin: Dublin University Press, 1942. Claims that Aeschylus borrowed language in Prometheus Bound from two types of source, one literary and the other colloquial. Designed to help students better understand the language of Aeschylus.
Thomson, George. Aeschylus and Athens: A Study in the Social Origins of Drama. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1968. Presents history and interpretations of the myth of Prometheus; explains how this myth fits into Prometheus Bound.