Why is Prometheus the noblest saint and martyr in the philosophical calendar?

Prometheus trilogy by the ancient Greek writer Aeschylus: Prometheus was bound, Prometheus was released, and Prometheus sent fire. Because of the long history, the last two plays have been lost, so the title of Prometheus should be translated into Prometheus Bound. According to expert research, when Prometheus was released for the second time, Zeus reconciled with Prometheus and asked his son Hercules to release Prometheus. The third part is Prometheus who sends fire, which is about Prometheus, the patron saint of Athens who worships human beings. There is a torch parade in the play.

Prometheus is one of Aeschylus' representative works. The story goes like this: Zeus overthrew his father Cronus with the help of Prometheus and distributed various privileges to the gods. But instead of caring about human beings, he thinks they are stupid and wants to destroy them and create a new human being. Prometheus sympathized with human suffering and foresaw that human beings had creative ability, so he stole fire from the sky and gave it to mortals regardless of dogma, and taught them science, writing, medicine and divination, so that they had the technology, knowledge and wisdom to overcome difficulties and obstacles and survive. This angered Zeus, who made Hermes, the god of fire, tie Prometheus to a cliff in the Caucasus, causing him great pain. Prometheus voluntarily suffered to save mankind.

At the beginning of the play, Prometheus was dragged onto the stage by the god of power and violence, his hands were chained, his waist and feet were tied, and his whole huge body was firmly nailed to the Caucasus cliff. In this process of locking and binding, he has been silently enduring.

After the god of power and violence left, Prometheus was passionate about generate, calling on the sky, the earth, the sun and everything in the universe to show them the sufferings imposed on him by Zeus. Prometheus himself has the ability to predict, knowing that this is fate and irresistible, and knowing that Zeus will finally reconcile with him. He complained for himself, saying that he just loved human beings too much, and secretly gave the flame of the sacred world to human beings, which gave them an important means of survival and became the enemy of Zeus, so they were punished.

The choir is composed of daughters of Changhe God. They have many children. The sound of the hammer that Hermes tied Prometheus to the cliff alarmed them, and they floated in the air. They sympathized with his experience and accused Zeus of cruelty and tyranny. Prometheus told them that although Zeus insulted him and persecuted him now, he would eventually ask him for something because he knew the fate of Zeus and how Zeus could avoid being overthrown like his father, but he would not easily reveal the secret because he was afraid of Zeus unless Zeus first reconciled and relieved the humiliation and pain imposed on him. Prometheus explained to the choir in detail the reason why Zeus had hurt him: there was an infighting in the divine world, and some gods tried to overthrow Zeus' father's rule and make Zeus king. In this conflict, Prometheus sided with Zeus and helped Zeus defeat his opponent. After Zeus came to power, he endowed the gods with various privileges, but he was indifferent to mankind and even wanted to destroy this generation of mankind. Prometheus was dissatisfied with the injustice after Zeus came to power, but he stood up to protect mankind and gave the fire to mankind.

Oceanus, the river god, rode a flying horse to visit Prometheus. Prometheus is also the husband of Hesione, the daughter of Changhe God. Therefore, the river god is Prometheus' husband. Changhe God is a controversial figure in this play. Does he have any secret motives or just loyal friendship to help Prometheus? In the works, we think that Changhe God came to express his friendship and affection and was willing to go home, but he also said that he was prepared to take risks to plead with Zeus for his friends. River God may be selfish and even conceited, but he is not timid (Prometheus regards caution as cowardice). If he is timid, because based on my experience in the Cultural Revolution, Changhe God should draw a clear line and avoid it. It is absolutely impossible to ask for trouble at this time. If he has any ulterior motives, it was appointed by Zeus, and there is no conclusive evidence. Greek gods, like human beings, have their own emotions and complicated personalities. What he said is not a complete lie. He believes that as long as his fellow gods give in early, they will be rewarded. Prometheus is still a bold rebel, and regards this self-proclaimed messenger of peace as a flattering and cowardly god. Therefore, the advice of Changhe God did not have the expected effect. Prometheus himself did not show weakness, but was more tenacious in strength and glory. He has great respect for the elder, but he is tired of his endless preaching. From his advice aphorisms, we can see that he is a pedantic moralist and a cautious and conservative consultant.

In the second scene, Prometheus shows that he has done a lot for mankind. He taught all human skills such as architecture, meteorology, mathematics, technology, literature and art, animal husbandry and navigation. In ancient Greek legends, the goddess of fate was portrayed as a blind and mysterious image. Even if Zeus with great power was used, her will could not be reversed, and the god of Olympus could not get rid of the bondage of fate, and Prometheus was no exception.

In the third scene, Io, the daughter of Changhe God, came running. The introduction of the role of Io seems casual, but the effect produced by this role cannot be ignored. In this play, Zeus killed two characters, one he hated and the other he was infatuated with. The former is Prometheus and the latter is Io. When Prometheus predicted that the thirteenth generation of Russian descendants would save him, the relationship between Russia and the play was revealed. This episode about Iraq and Russia is not just a way to extend the script. Prometheus only vaguely talked about the secret at first, and all his hopes rested on it. However, when Io entered the arena, he remembered that she would soon rest in peace, so he comforted himself that although he could not get rid of it now, he would get it one day, so he was determined to wait for the day when his retribution was clear, and then he could get rid of it even if his keeper did not relax him. When Io entered the arena, his personality changed a little. We saw this god suddenly gain confidence from pessimism and rise up against depression. The endless suffering he was afraid of just now seemed to be only a short time between pulses. The rule of the new king is limited. From the beginning, Prometheus' arrogant attitude remained to the end, which was more interesting than the beginning. This is because Prometheus' character became stronger and the play became active. The river god came out to mediate, but Prometheus refused, thinking it was too early and obviously impossible. If Io doesn't come out, the play will stop, and when he tells Io about her future, he seems to have seen with his own eyes the benefactor who released him, that is, the descendants of future Io.

This episode is not only an important part of the whole play, but also plays a much more important role than a minor character. She can arouse the sympathy and concentration of the audience. She occupied the action in the play and relaxed the tension that the audience once concentrated on the protagonist.

Finally, God sent Hermes on Zeus' orders to tell him the secret of Zeus' fate, and threatened that if he refused to tell him, Zeus would drive him into the abyss, and sent an eagle to peck at his liver and torture him endlessly, making him wish he was dead. Prometheus, servant of Zeus and servant of the new king, was fearless and unwavering. When he answered Hermes' questions, he showed an iron character and sneered at Zeus' orders. Hermes had just left when the lightning flashed and the earth shook, and Prometheus was knocked down by roaring lightning. The play is over.

This play has always been valued by people and regarded as a classic. Because it created a tall Prometheus who dared to seek happiness for mankind and rebelled against Zeus, the Lord of the gods, he loved and sympathized with mankind, and did not want mankind to continue to live an ignorant life, so he brought knowledge and fire to mankind, opened the door to human wisdom and led mankind to the road of civilization. He is unyielding in pain and suffering, and he holds the secret of Zeus' fate. Only Zeus gave in to him first, and he would never ask Zeus for mercy. His glorious and lofty spirit of enduring suffering for mankind is admired and admired by people.

Prometheus is the embodiment of tenacity, patience and courage, although he is endowed with these superhuman characters. The majesty of God that day can only surprise us, and only his humanity can arouse our sympathy. His high fighting spirit and pure personality contain amazing spiritual purification, which makes people transcend the ordinary life and see the glory of the sacred ideal.

The sufferings of Prometheus remind us of Jesus who was crucified. They are all heroes. They all did an earth-shattering event, a good thing for the benefit of all beings.

The play has a simple plot and few actions. Minor characters appear one by one, only related to the protagonist Prometheus. Although there is no horizontal connection between the minor characters, they are essential to describe the character of the main characters. It is through the dialogue between the main characters and the minor characters such as chorus, Changhe God, Io and Hermes that the poet explains the plot background and depicts the characters' personalities. The descriptions of other gods in the play, such as the brutality of the powerful god, the pedantry and absurdity of the long river god, the face of the slaves created by God, and the suffering of Vulcan, are like all beings around the tyrant. The Greek gods were beaten black and blue and almost died under the resistance of Prometheus.

In the play, a chorus composed of the daughter of Changhe God came with tears in its eyes and its soul was sad. No other role or chorus in Prometheus's works has such a sweet personality and trembling emotion. But their beauty is still better than tenderness, and this kind of chorus can best express the views and emotions that the poet wants to arouse. In Greek tragedy, the choir should not take part in the action in the play, but should be close to the hero in the play. Nothing is softer and sweeter than the words, songs and feelings of these little fairies. These feminine women set off the strong Prometheus and played a special role.

Although Zeus himself did not appear, all the characters in the play thought Zeus was cruel. The newly acquired Lord of the gods is tyrannical, biting off the hand that feeds him and exposing his face. Prometheus was the only person who openly opposed Zeus' autocratic rule. In fact, other gods are not satisfied, because no one is free except the king under autocratic rule.

People are born without freedom and love freedom at the same time. People pursue freedom, but they lose it. When they lose their freedom, they are more determined to pursue freedom. This is the aesthetic charm of Prometheus, and the times gave birth to Prometheus spirit. Prometheus transcended the times and became the epitome of all mankind. His uniqueness lies in that for the survival and development of mankind, he did not hesitate to disobey the destiny and oppose Zeus, and suffered a lot, but he had no regrets. This is the noblest image of saints and martyrs in philosophy. His story has been spread to this day because people have benefited a lot from it and because the times need to call for heroes like Prometheus, who have promoted the development of society.

From Prometheus:

* Herjunstos: This is your reward for caring about mankind. You are a god, not afraid of the wrath of the gods, but you gave that precious thing to mankind. They don't deserve it. To this end, you will stand on this desolate stone and watch, sleep without sleeping, and sit without sitting; You will make countless sighs and useless groans; Because Zeus's heart is heartless; Every new god is strict.

God of power: Everything is difficult except being king in heaven. No one is free except Zeus.

Distrust of friends is a common fault of tyrants.

* The tide is falling, making a sad sound, the bottom of the sea is sobbing, the dark dungeon below is howling, and the clear river is also lamenting your misfortune and suffering.

Brother Prometheus: Then pay tribute to your master, pray and flatter him forever! I don't care about Zeus! What he intends to do, let him rule this short time; Because his days as king in heaven will not last long.