Gods Depictions in the Illiad and Prometheus Bound
“Beloved Zeus himself, who is lord over all gods and all men, Kronos’ son showered the wonder of wealth upon them” is a line straight out of Homer’s Iliad (Bk. ... Aeschylus writes in Prometheus Bound, “This is a tyrants deed; this is unlovely, a thing done by a tyrant’s private laws, and with this thing Zeus shows his haughtiness of temper toward the Gods that were of old” (lines 402-405). ... Due to the time period in which each story is to have taken place (not when each story was written) and the author’s desired effect, the gods in each work are depicted differently in their levels of obedience to Zeus and in their treatment towards mortals. Most all gods and goddesses in the Iliad are concerned with the affairs of the mortals. Homer depicts these deities as gods who live and act under their own will, but who respect Zeus and make sure not to disobey him too much. ... Differing greatly from Prometheus Bound, Homer’s depicted gods are allowed much free will and some often go against the will of Zeus unpunished. ... Two gods, Hermes and Hephaestus, though on the level of the Olympians, can also be directly compared to Prometheus Bound in which they are also characters. ... Though Zeus does owe Thetis a favor, her bravery in coming to the god of gods and asking him to do the will of her mortal son would be unheard of by the gods in the Prometheus Bound. ... She says to him, “Sleep, lord over all mortal men and all gods, if ever before now you listened to a word of mine, so now also do as I ask [. ... Finally, after giving him one of the “younger Graces to marry” and swearing an oath of sincerity, Hera convinces him to lull the king of gods to sleep. ... Zeus tells Hermes that he, “beyond all other gods is dearest to be man’s companion” (lines 334-335), and Homer later refers to Hermes as “the kind god” (line 679). ... In the Iliad and in Prometheus Bound, Hephaestus follows the will of Zeus, but in Homer’s Iliad, he is much more active in the dealings of mortals.