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Definition of Motif
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the central themes of a book... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of... read full definition
Key Examples in Prometheus Unbound
Motifs
Explanation and Analysis—Prometheus as Satan:
Curiously, just as Prometheus is likened to Jesus Christ—sacrificing himself for humanity—so is he compared, throughout the poem, to Satan. The duality of this comparison is interesting, given that the two could not be more opposed to one another. Yet Satan, in Shelley's view, also defied the wishes of the God in charge to bring something to humanity. Where Prometheus provided fire, Satan gifted (or cursed, depending on one's perspective) humanity with the "knowledge of good and evil." This interpretation of Satan, as an occult figure acting with the best interests of humanity in mind, would have been fairly unorthodox for Shelley's time. The idea that human beings should be allowed access to all knowledge, instead of simply having faith in an omniscient God, departs from the traditional Christian teachings still prevalent throughout Europe in the early 1800s.
Related Themes:
Act 1
Explanation and Analysis—A New Beginning:
At the beginning of Act 2, Scene 1, Asia personifies spring, addressing it as a "child of many winds." The description of the joy of Spring that follows is intended as a form of imagery, paralleling her emotional state:
Unlock with LitCharts A+O Spring!
O child of many winds! As suddenly
Thou comest as the memory of a dream,
Which now is sad because it hath been sweet;
Like genius, or like joy which riseth up
As from the earth, clothing with golden clouds
The desert of our life …
This is the season, this the day, the hour;
At sunrise thou shouldst come, sweet sister mine …
Too long desired, too long delaying, come!
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Prometheus as Christ:
Throughout the poem, various references are made likening Prometheus to Jesus Christ, a man who, like Prometheus, suffered for the sins of humanity and took them upon himself. Prometheus is also central to a prophecy of hope that predicts the future freedom of humanity, just like Jesus Christ.
Take the following scene from Act 1, for instance, in which Panthea and Ione discuss the image of Jesus Christ shown by the Furies to Prometheus:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Panthea:
Alas, I looked forth twice, but will no more.
Ione:
What didst thou see?
Panthea:
A woeful sight: a youth
With patient looks nailed to a crucifix.
Related Themes:
Act 2, Scene 1
Explanation and Analysis—A New Beginning:
At the beginning of Act 2, Scene 1, Asia personifies spring, addressing it as a "child of many winds." The description of the joy of Spring that follows is intended as a form of imagery, paralleling her emotional state:
Unlock with LitCharts A+O Spring!
O child of many winds! As suddenly
Thou comest as the memory of a dream,
Which now is sad because it hath been sweet;
Like genius, or like joy which riseth up
As from the earth, clothing with golden clouds
The desert of our life …
This is the season, this the day, the hour;
At sunrise thou shouldst come, sweet sister mine …
Too long desired, too long delaying, come!
Related Themes:
