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Melkor
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 2:24 AMEveryone seems to assume that the title Prometheus refers to/ is a nod towards the story of the Titan Prometheus stealing fire from the Gods to give to man.
Maybe.
BUT- it seems to me that the event from Greek myth that the title really relates to is the creation of Man which was performed by Prometheus.
"Prometheus shaped man out of mud, and Athena breathed life into his clay figure..."
Comments?
14 Replies

dallas!dallas!
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 2:31 AMDoes it have to be either/or?
Scott has been making much use of the fire aspect of the myth in virtually every interview. My money is on both aspects playing a part.

shambs
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 2:38 AMIt is possible that the essence of metaphor of Prometheus lies with Peter Weyland and his crew. But we must not forget that there will be a sacrifice Engineer (perhaps by orginen of humanity)

kay
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 2:39 AMEveryone thinks it's about fire from the gods...but no one thinks it's about human curiosity unleashing the horrors out of
Pandoras box...and the angel of hope at the bottom redeeming us..a cautionary tale...

nysalor
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 5:10 AMThe Eridu and Sumerian references also relate the creation of humankind. Eridu was an ancient Sumerian city, one of the first in the world, created around (uh huh) a line of temples called 'The Mound of Creation'. It was also home to Adamu (Adam), great culture hero and mortal from a godly lineage, who brought the arts of civilization to humans.

nysalor
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 5:18 AMSo structurally, Prometheus:
* Is one of the last free members of an ancient and powerful race (Titans).
* Creates humankind out of clay. Makes them to stand upright, as the gods do.
* Steals the arts of civilisation/forbidden knowledge for them from the gods.
* Tricks the gods on behalf of his human creations (the sacrifice trickery).
* Is punished horribly by the gods for his crime.
The Engineer of humankind? Peter Weyland? Or possibly both of them are linked in some way.

nysalor
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 5:35 AMI said 'one of'. The history is irrelevant: it is Eridu's status in Sumerian mythology as one of the first five cities and the city of the first kings that is important here. Prometheus appears to be dipping into both Sumerian mythology and its fringe interpretation by contemporary ufo cultists for inspiration.

takka_takka_takka
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 9:29 AMI don't think the name of the film has any deep significance. It is the name of the project and the ship. This name was chosen by Weyland because he sees himself as a Promethean figure. The reason he sees himself as a promethean figure is that he gives godlike technology to humans.
The marketing department probably wasn't focusing on the liver pecking aspect of the myth.

Id Rather Be Eatin Something Else
MemberOvomorphMay-24-2012 9:36 AM
You could be right Takka, perhaps the story of the Titan Prometheus stealing fire from the Gods to give to man and indeed herge into the sequel potential of the Prometheus film franchise. And it is here that the franchise will possibly if not permanantly digress ever-further away from the first Prometheus film isolating it off from any direct/indirect connections with that of the Alien Franchise and maintaining it as a stand-alone concept now. Perhaps later on down the road some sort of film cross-connection could occur but I would hope that clever thinking would keep bot the Prometheus and Alien franchises seperate for a while so as they can breath and grow in their own right.
Good thought processes Takka, I think there's possibilities there.
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