Prometheus: 8 Mythological & Literary Motifs In The Film
2. Greek Myth - Epimetheus & Pandora
It doesnt stop there. Whilst Prometheus (Greek meaning: forethought) was the wise and benevolent benefactor of mankind, he acted as a kind of regent with his brother, Epimetheus (Greek meaning: afterthought). Epimetheus wasnt the sharpest tool in the titan toolbox, and Zeus exploited this After the creation of man Epimetheus was responsible for ascribing a positive characteristic to every member of creation, but when it was time to give man a constructive trait, lacking foresight he found that there was nothing left! Variant myths have different specifics, but the crux is that Prometheus decided that mankind's attributes would be the civilizing arts and fire, which he stealthily stole from the Olympians and bequeathed to us. We know how Prometheus suffered. But there's more According to Hesiod, Prometheuss brother Epimetheus accepted the gift of Pandora from Zeus- Zeuss way of gaining further revenge against Prometheus and the race of man for whom he had declared himself a champion. Pandora, of course, would one day open the box/ jar that let all the miseries of life into the world... Its not difficult to see the Engineers croissant shaped spaceship, replete with caseload after caseload of the calamity-inducing black liquid, as being representative of the woes from Pandoras box. And the struggle between different generations of gods, exemplified by the constant games of one-upmanship between Zeus, Prometheus and Epimetheus, is imitated by the conflict between man, android and Engineer in Prometheus. I have had conversations with friends who think that one central character has been chosen by the Prometheus writing team to specifically resemble the actual mythical character of Prometheus. They often believe this to be the Engineer who sacrifices himself at the beginning of the movie, or Shaw or David. I disagree with such interpretations, and think its more a case of the movie repeating the central themes associated with the Prometheus myth - creation, destruction and sacrifice. The constant reinforcement of these key themes shows that, at its heart, Prometheus serves as i) a metaphorical cautionary tale about the dangers of dabbling with that which is not understood, and ii) a parable that creation and knowledge is inexorably linked to annihilation and sacrifice. However, if I had to pick one character who for me most exemplifies the mythical Prometheus, I would actually say that it is our space jockey from Alien! As you can see from my previous article in this series, I think it is he who was the true benefactor of mankind, who stole the weapon from the gods, using it against them in order to allow mankind to continue to thrive.