Throughout Ayn Rand’s novel Anthem, numerous objects and occurrences symbolize much more than what they are presented as. Of the more obvious symbols, light has the largest impact on the course of the story. The most important instance of light centers around Equality 7-2521’s re-invention of the light bulb. Rand uses light to provide a religious, mythic feeling to the acts of Equality 7-2521 and how he symbolizes light himself. In a society where all men and women are one equal and single minded being; Equality 7-2521 becomes the lone source of individuality and a beacon of light to the people of this oppressed civilization. When the Golden One gives Equality 7-2521 the name Prometheus after the Greek deity it symbolizes his heroism and gift
Heroes, Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths, a novel by Bernard Evslin, retells short stories of the most famous gods and monsters of Greek Mythology. Evslin creates a simplistic way for the reader to understand more about these myths, through short story telling. Each god and monster is given their own chapter, and are explained thoroughly, but simplistically to help the reader understand these stories better. Evslin’s method of storytelling was effective and the way each story connected made it an easy and enjoyable read. I found it helpful that each piece was told through a maximum of about six pages. Only the important details were included in each of the myths, which makes this book useful for educational purposes. I can see this book
Zeus wanted man to bring a part of an animal they sacrificed, as a gift to the gods. This is when Prometheus decided to trick Zeus. Therefore, Prometheus had one pile of bones wrapped in fat, and another pile of the hide, but hidden in the hide was the good meat. Zeus only wanted one part of the sacrificed animal, so Prometheus made Zeus chose which one he wanted. However, Zeus picked wrong, he chose the bones. “But Zeus in the anger of his heart hid it, because Prometheus the crafty deceived him; therefore he planned sorrow and mischief against men.” (Hesiod, Works and Days, 42-58). As a punishment Zeus hid fire from mankind. Obviously not good enough because it was stolen yet again, so that it could be given back to man. In return Zeus decided to give another punishment. Sent down as a “gifts”, one of which was an irresistibly beautiful women. Pandora was her name. Pandora had be sent down with another gift, but she was forbidden to open it. Zeus sent her down to Epimetheus, brother of Prometheus.
Hesiod’s Theogony was a myth that addressed the connection between human beings to the Gods and the universe. Giving that Hesiod lived during the Iron age ( 750-650 B.C.) alongside Homer, it is not extraordinary that the two shared similar religious views. Keeping that in mind, he was able to offer his interpretation of how the world came into existence in his epic poem the Theogony. While creating Prometheus’ myth, he focused on the ominous interactions between Zeus and Prometheus that lead to abhorrent events such as the creation of Pandora. On the contrary, Aeschylus lived in the sixth Century B.C. amid a time of great stir and movement in matters of religion and speculation. Hesiod’s Theogony was no longer able to satisfy the higher minds among the nation. Thus, inspiring Aeschylus to write tragic poets such as Prometheus’ Bound in order to express his own ideology and pointing the moral of tragedy. It is no surprise that Hesiod viewed Zeus as a glorified olympian hero and Prometheus as a traitor who stole fire and gave it to mankind. Aeschylus’s idea of Prometheus was conflicting to Hesiod, whereby he viewed Prometheus as a god supporting the civilization of mankind. Through thorough analysis of Zeus’ interaction with Prometheus in both Hesiod’s Theogony and Aeschylus’ Prometheus Bound, this essay will be able to clarify which one of the authors had the most accurate
Anthem is a very symbolic novel that reinforces and expresses Ayn Rand's beliefs. The novel Anthem focuses on collectivism which is the thought that everything should be done for the good of the group. Great examples of symbolism is the uncharted forest, the name prometheus and the light bulb.
Theater, government, and religion were all essential parts of ancient Greek culture. A unique trait which all of these aspects of ancient Greek society shared was progression and development. Theater progressed from simply relaying stories to tackling controversial topics which sparked discussion. Government showed growth and progression in both Sparta and Athens. Sparta developed a militaristic society which eliminated socioeconomic inequality and Athens’s monarchy evolved into a free democracy where people’s voices were heard. Religion does not contain progression as easily identifiable since there is no true timeline of the myths. However, it can be seen that over the course of many myths, there are Gods who hold power over
In the last chapter of Anthem, Equality reflects, “The best in me had been my sins and my transgressions”(98). He no longer holds the belief that society is simply ‘misguided’ or that they are ‘forgiving’. Instead, Prometheus embraces individuality, rejecting the concept that, “We are all in all and all in one” held by his former society (19). “I am done with this creed of corruption,” Equality declares, no longer willing to slave for his brothers (97). It is this declaration of independence which breaks Equality’s chains allowing him to rejoice in his ‘sins’.
It was written in Greek mythology that, the titan Prometheus was a wise craftsman who taught humans many useful skills, including ‘navigation, writing, and architecture’.Prometheus, created humans by shaping clay into figures that looked like the gods. The gods admired these figures and ‘breathed life’ into them. Zeus disliked the ‘creatures’, but ‘he could not destroy them’. He did, however, force them to the live on earth and denied them immortality.Prometheus felt sorry for humans, so when given the task of presenting offerings to the gods, he decided to manipulate the situation.He decided to trick Zeus into taking the lesser offering, saving the best for the humans. By doing this, Prometheus ensured that humans got the better end of the deal. Angered by this trick, Zeus punished humans by
Mythology reveals details about the social, religious, and philosophical beliefs of early civilizations. Myths also expose flaws of human nature. Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold reveals that it is easier to accept a distorted sense of self and reality rather than face the truth. Orual insists that her struggles are caused by the gods, but in the last section of the novel, the main character, also the narrator, reveals the role she plays in her own painful journey. The protagonist finally “faces” some difficult truths, and holds herself accountable for the hardships she causes or endures. While it is often said that “ignorance is bliss” (Gray), Lewis illustrates through the narrative perspective, epiphany and symbolism that sometimes an
Deception and lies both play large roles in Greek mythology. Even Zeus, who is said to punish liars, frequently tricks both mortals and immortals. Although it always has a prominent role in myths, deceit is a powerful factor in the myths of Prometheus, Nessus, and Zeus.
In The Odyssey, by Homer, Athena influences the lives of Odysseus and his family. In Greek mythology, gods challenge and control mortals. Gods also provide support to mortals and thus, mortals depend and act on behalf of the gods and their decisions. Athena, daughter of Zeus, is the goddess of wisdom, and both Telemachus and Odysseus benefit from her power. Athena possesses the ability to disguise herself and others, and this skill allows her to give advice and guidance. For example, Athena uses her power of disguise to help Telemachus on his journey to find his father. She continues to use this power to disguise Odysseus as a beggar to allow him to reunite with his family and prove his power and worth to Penelope among the suitors. Telemachus and Odysseus are ultimately victorious because of Athena’s power; in fact, Athena is the hero of this epic poem.
Prometheus Bound and The Book of Job are two stories that are both similar in many ways, but at the same time very different from one another. Prometheus Bound is a story about a man who kindly assists humans and gives them fire for their own use. However, Zeus does not like the fact that Prometheus helped the humans, or is friends with them, so he decided to punish Prometheus for what he done. Zeus has his his servant Hephaestus chain Prometheus to a rock and leave him there. Prometheus spend days on the rock and talks to the Chorus of Oceanis, lo, and Hermes while he is on the rock and explains to them all why he is chained to the rock. To end the story a thunderstorm rolls in and Prometheus is left chained to the rock. The Book of Job is a story about a man who “feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:1, ESV). He was a very wealthy man who had ten children, many livestock, and many servants. Satan speaks to God one day and God gives him permission to test Job’s faith. Satan begins by taking away Job’s children, killing his livestock,
Always look behind” (Choy 90). And Jook-Liang’s ever-favourite Monkey King myths - told by Poh-Poh - had multiple morals to teach. One of the morals is that people are people no matter what race they are, as “Monkey could not do without human company, black or white or yellow” (Choy 23). There are other myths were moral lessons can be learned. For instance, the Greek mythology of Pandora and her box is about a woman who, out of curiosity, opens a box that is not to be opened, and opens the world to the hate and bad traits seen in today’s people (GreekBoston.com). This myth gives the moral ‘curiosity kills the cat’ or, in the story’s case, ‘curiosity overtakes the decision to make right
Tenessee Williams is one of the most outstanding playwrights in American Theatre. His play The Glass Menagerie premiered in Chicago in 1944 and was an instant hit. It is set in the days of the Great Depression of 1930s when unemployment, inflation and shortage of necessary things had made the lives of people all over the world miserable. The playwright has sought to evaluate this era that caused financial as well as emotional trauma through depiction of the plight of a middle class family living in St. Louis, Missouri. The play deals with the memories of Tom Wingfield, an officer in the Merchant Navy, who had deserted his poor mother, Amanda, and disabled sister, Laura, in order to pursue a life of adventure but suffers from acute remorse due to his realisation of what his helpless family must have gone through in his absence. The objective of this paper is to study the reasons of Tom’s abandonment of his family and his perpetual anguish as its result.
The play Prometheus bound, composed by the Greek tragedian Aeschylus, presents a rather uncommon view of Zeus’ character compared to other ancient Greek authors. Instead of being described as merciful and kind, Zeus’ lack of experience as a leader and his harshness are mentioned regularly. Throughout the play, Zeus’ decisions and his capability of being the gods’ leader are being continually challenged, mainly through examples of Zeus’ former mistakes. In addition to Prometheus, the other Dramatis Personae are Cratos (Strength), Via (Violence), the god Hephaistos, Oceanus, the Chorus, consisting of Oceanus’ daughters, Io and Hermes, who plays the role of Zeus’ messenger. Even though the king of the gods does not appear once in the entire drama, he is a consistent subject of conversation,