When a jealous Zeus discovers that the compassionate Titan, Prometheus, has introduced the gift of fire to liberate mere mortals from oppression and servitude, he has Prometheus bound to a rocky prison in the Scythian desert, where the god discloses the reason for his punishment - and in one brief sentence learns the whole at once- all arts among the human race are from Prometheus.
Prometheus Bound is one of only seven surviving plays by the prolific Athenian playwright, Aeschylus. Born into a noble family in 525 BC, Aeschylus is credited with having introduced dialogue into the Greek drama, and indeed is a father of modern theater.
Translated by E.H. Plumptre.
