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Prometheus Bound Character Analysis

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4 Zeus’ Character in Aeschylus’ Prometheus Bound
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, …show more content…

The exact date of the tragedy’s origin is unclear, ranging from 480-410 BC. Originally, Prometheus Bound was part of a trilogy with the plays Prometheus Unbound (Prometheus Luomenos) and Prometheus Fire-Bringer (Prometheus Pyrphoros), although some believe that there even was a fourth play, a satyric drama called Prometheus Fire Kindler (Prometheus Pyrkaeus) (Aeschylus quoted by Anon., 2017). As neither Prometheus Unbound nor Prometheus Fire-Bringer is preserved, their context is mostly unknown. Nevertheless, there are still a lot of theories and speculations of the other plays’ content, especially regarding the end of the trilogy. For example, it is commonly assumed that the final part of the series focuses on Zeus and Prometheus setting aside their hatred for each other, their relationship

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