13
Thereupon, I moulded my material, With water mingling clay, and created man, calling in Athene to aid me in the task. And this is my rank offence against the Gods.. Destructive work,— to reduce inanimate clay to life and motion! The Gods, it seems, are Gods no longer, now that there are mortal creatures on the earth. To judge at least by Zeus’s indignation, one would suppose that the Gods suffered some loss of prestige -from the creation of mankind; unless it is that he is afraid of another revolt, of their waging war with heaven, like the Giants.
14
That the cause of the Gods suffered nothing at my hands is evident; show me the slightest instance to the contrary, and I will-say no more; I have but my deserts. But for the positive benefits I have conferred, use: the evidence of your eyes. The earth, no longer barren and untilled, is decked with cities and farms and the fruits of cultivation; the sea has its ships, theislands their inhabitants. Everywhere are altars and temples, everywhere festivals and sacrifices: Zeus with his presence fills their hr enherngs He fills their streets. Had I created mankind for my own private convenience, it might perhaps have denoted a grasping spirit: but I made them common property; they are at the service of every God of you. Nay more: temples of Zeus, and Apollo, and Hera, temples of Hermes, are everywhere to be seen; but who ever saw a temple of Prometheus? You may judge from this, how far I have sacrificed the common cause ta my private ambition.
