Prometheus Ontboeid: Een Lyrisch Drama in Vier Bedrijven
1820
Prometheus Ontboeid: Een Lyrisch Drama in Vier Bedrijven
1820
Translated by Alex. Gutteling
A lyrical drama written in the early 19th century. This poetic work explores themes of oppression, suffering, and the quest for enlightenment through the mythological figure of Prometheus, who defies the gods to give fire and knowledge to humanity. The narrative portrays the character of Prometheus, bound and tormented by Jupiter, symbolizing the struggle against tyranny and the enduring nature of hope and love. The opening of this drama introduces Prometheus, bound in a desolate ravine as he laments his eternal suffering under Jupiter's tyranny. He expresses despair but also a fierce determination to endure, highlighting the tension between the sovereign power of the gods and the plight of humankind. Accompanied by the spirits of the Earth and two sea nymphs, Panthea and Ione, Prometheus evokes the forces of nature in his sorrowful plight while yearning for a revelation that may ultimately liberate him and humanity. The stage is set for a profound exploration of themes such as love and redemption, as well as the powerful struggle against oppressive rule.
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“Death is the veil which those who live call life; They sleep, and it is lifted.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“When soul meets soul on lovers' lips.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“To suffer woes which Hope thinks infinite; To forgive wrongs darker than death or night; To defy power which seems omnipotent; To love, and bear; to hope till Hope creates From its own wreck the thing it contemplates Life may change, but it may fly not; Hope may vanish, but can die not; Truth be veiled, but still it burneth; Love repulsed -but it returneth.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“All spirits are enslaved which serve things evil.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“Gentleness, Virtue, Wisdom, and Endurance,These are the seals of that most firm assurance Which bars the pit over Destruction's strength;And if, with infirm hand, Eternity, Mother of many acts and hours, should free The serpent that would clasp her with his length;These are the spells by which to reassumeAn empire o'er the disentangled doom.To suffer woes which Hope thinks infinite; To forgive wrongs darker than death or night; To defy Power, which seems omnipotent;To love, and bear; to hope till Hope createsFrom its own wreck the thing it contemplates; Neither to change, nor falter, nor repent; This, like thy glory, Titan, is to beGood, great and joyous, beautiful and free;This is alone Life, Joy, Empire, and Victory.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“No change, no pause, no hope! Yet I endure.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“Joy, joy, joy!Past ages crowd on thee, but each one remembers,And the future is dark, and the present is spread,Like a pillow of thorns for thy slumberless head.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“to hope til Hope creates from its own wreak the thing it contemplates;””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
“And the abyss shouts from her depth laid bare,Heaven, hast thou secrets? Man unveils me; I have none.””
— Percy Bysshe Shelley
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