In class, we discussed the manifesto of Percy Shelley’s Prometheus Unbound, and how its main idea was how people should not rely on and pray to a god or higher power, but instead rely on our brilliance as a species. It does this by showing humans relationships with the gods specifically Greek gods. In this post, I found the best themes that were explored in Prometheus Unbound and analyze how they support the main idea.

When reading Prometheus Unbound, I found two themes to help support the main idea: knowledge of freedom and defiance of authority. The first theme of knowledge of freedom means the possession of knowledge brings about freedom. In Prometheus Unbound, Prometheus’s desire to teach mankind brought his own loss in freedom. Once, Prometheus was freed, he is able to lead mankind down the path of true knowledge and freedom. The idea that knowledge gives us freedom supports the main idea by stating that knowledge is all humans need. So we shouldn’t pray to a god for help but instead, allow people the freedom to explore and question beliefs, so that humanity can advance.

The next theme is the defiance of authority. In Prometheus Unbound, defiance is shown from Prometheus’s relationship with Jupiter. For example, Jupiter gives Prometheus an offer for his freedom.  He rejects his suggestion though and says that he will never stop resisting Jupiter because he enslaved humanity and the world. The way that this supports the main idea is humans should believe in what they want to, and should not allow God to change their beliefs. So that humans can learn right and wrong on their own.

Overall, I believe the themes I discussed helped support the main idea. I do this by explaining what makes these themes and the main idea similar. But there are still more themes that could be explored. So, do you agree with the themes I have chosen to support the main idea? Or do you believe there are better themes to help support the main idea?