Prometheus Bound, 4

The Nymphs, feeling sorry for Io, lament the treachery of Zeus's romances.  Prometheus revels in his knowledge of Zeus's ultimate overthrow-- even growing bolder in his taunts, to the Nymphs' chagrin.

Hermes arrives, on a mission from Zeus, to ask the details of this overthrow.  Prometheus responds with his boldest sneers yet:

Oh, the pomposity, the superfine conceit
Of such a speech!  It fits an errandboy
Of gods so new in youth and rule they think
They live on heights too high for grief.
From these same heights-- ah!-- have I not seen
Two monarchs fall?  As now the third, this moment's king,
I shall see fall most shamefully and swift tomorrow...

Back-and-forth between Prometheus and Hermes: Hermes ridiculing Prometheus for his defiance, while Prometheus makes fun of Hermes for his devotion, and rages against his (and the other Olympians') betrayal of himself.  Continued refusal to tell Zeus what he needs to know, even through worse punishment.  Hermes promises that it's coming-- including storms, floods, and the eagle eating his liver-- and could only be stopped if some other god takes Prometheus's place.

Prometheus will not be moved-- in part because he know full well what is coming.  And so the howling wind rises...

----------------------------

Defiance.  OK, so what does it actually mean?

If Prometheus in the play represents mankind, we have Aeschylus claiming an inherent dignity for man as opposed to subordination to the will of the gods.  They will be masters of their own fate.  After all, the Greeks, and especially the Athenians, just beat back an existential threat in the form of an invading foreign army.  (But wouldn't they have credited the gods with assisting them in the defense of their homeland?)

This is also starting to work out the contradictions inherent in the Greeks' conception of the gods-- as flawed, bumbling, petty Super-creatures that can't keep their own affairs in order.  Other than their power, what characteristics do the gods possess that make them worthy of worship?  And if men can demonstrate impressive power of their own-- or can start to resist and tame the external troubles attributed to the gods-- who needs 'em?  A period of unchecked success leads to a period of novel hubris and self-importance.  But it can't last forever.

It would be nice to be able to read the remainder of the trilogy.