Prometheus: Archetypal Image of Human Existence

Description

Prometheus the god stole fire from heaven and bestowed it on humans. In punishment, Zeus chained him to a rock, where an eagle clawed unceasingly at his liver, until Herakles freed him. For the Greeks, the myth of Prometheus' release reflected a primordial law of existence and the fate of humankind. The author examines the story of Prometheus.

Carl Kerenyi was a professor of classics and the history of religion in his native Hungary. His works include Eleusis: Archetypal Image of Mother and Daughter and Dionysos: Archetypal Image of Indestructible Life, and he collaborated with C. G. Jung to write Essays on a Science of Mythology; all three books are available in Mythos paperback editions.

"A sterling example of classical scholarship, literary exegesis, and cultural inference... Not only does this book tell us much about man, through his prototypical image, but also much about the Greek civilization which created Prometheus in its image."--Contemporary Psychology