The theme that I am most interested in
discussing is Prometheus as a ‘trickster’. When contemplating the word
‘trickster’, I immediately thought of foxes, specifically from Japanese
folklore. Japanese foxes or Kitsune are considered to be trickster foxes
renowned for their mischievous metamorphic abilities. Haga concludes in his
articles about Kitsune is that the main qualities attributed to this animal and
it’s symbolic representations are the same in the East and the West, ‘Just as
in English the fox is used as a symbol of craft in foxy, ‘fox-like, and
foxiness’ etc., and so the Japanese have Kôgi (こうぎ), suspicion, literally, to suspect like a fox’ [P224].
Some interesting facts
that link the myths of Prometheus and Kitsune together are that Kitsune love
playing tricks; they like to take things and hide them from people. This is
similar to when Prometheus stole fire and hid it in a fennel stalk so that Zeus
would not notice. Another similarity is that Kitsune balls, or star balls,
which are small white-gold spheres and are a Kitsune's most prized possession, as
it is similar to their life force in a ball. If a person manages to find a
Kitsune's star ball, they would have the ability to control the Kitsune and
make it do their bidding. However, Kitsune hate being stripped of their
freedom, and when the Kitsune gets its star ball back, there will be serious
consequences for that person. The idea of the Kitsune having its star ball
taken is comparable to Prometheus being chained to the rock, as they have both
lost their freedom. This is an interesting comparison because it compares
mythical figures from two different cultures but their features and attributes
are very similar.
The Journal of American Folklore notes that
Aesop’s fable about the fox deceiving the lion has its own counterpart in a
Japanese tale, about a fox that made use of a tiger in a similar way [P224]. I feel that these
cultural representations of foxes are very similar to how Prometheus is
represented in ancient Greek religion and myth. Grottanelli states that ‘the mythical trickster
‘type’ was ‘discovered’ by 19th-century ethnographers in the native cultures of
North America, and then artificially ‘found in the mythologies of other ancient
and modern societies’ [P117]. Grottanelli believes that these different figures
of various mythologies have been thrown together to form a hybrid, which also
blurs the understanding of each separate mythology within its specific cultural
context [P117], a notion which I believe can clearly be seen in the context of
the Japanese Kitsune and the Greek Prometheus.
Another
fox figure I thought of when imagining a ‘trickster’ is Disney’s Robin Hood.
Throughout the film Robin Hood continuously disguises himself in order to trick
his enemies. He disguises himself as a fortune teller in order to steal from
Prince John, a beggar in order to fool the sheriff to get information, and as a
stalk he is able to take part in the archery tournament without being
recognised. Prometheus is like this in the way he gives Zeus the flesh innards
rich with the fat of an Ox in an offering at Mecone;
For when the gods and mortal men had a dispute at Mecone, even then
Prometheus was forward to cut up a great ox and set portions before them,
trying to deceive the mind of Zeus. Before the rest he set flesh and inner
parts thick with fat upon the hide, covering them with an ox paunch; [540] but
for Zeus he put the white bones dressed up with cunning art and covered with
shining fat. Then the father of men and of gods said to him: “Son of Iapetus,
most glorious of all lords, good sir, how unfairly you have divided the
portions!” [Hes. Th. 535-41]
Both Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days talk about Prometheus, and
together they present Prometheus as a trickster figure. Hesiod introduces
Prometheus in the Theogony as ‘one who dared to match wits with almighty
Zeus but ultimately failed’ [Hes. Th. 535-585]. Dougherty notes that
Hesiod’s Prometheus, ‘his association with cleverness, trickery and deception,
has much in common with the trickster figure that appears in the mythological
and folklore traditions of nearly every traditional society – sometimes as a
god, sometimes as an animal’ [Dougherty (2006): 33]. Dougherty’s description of
a Prometheus in many other cultures relates to the previous association with
Japanese Kitsune, both trickster figures and deceivers in their own right. They
are also described as ambiguous and anomalous, and even have the ability to
shape-shift (Kitsune are also known to take the forms of children and young
women to deceive people). Trickster figures usually associate with theft and
deception rather than using force or violence. Brown has pointed out that the
Greek verb meaning ‘to steal’ (kleptein) really means to remove secretly, and
Hesiod’s Prometheus embodies this translation when he steals fire from the gods
and hides it in a fennel stalk [Dougherty (2006): 34].
However trickster figures are also portrayed as those who are
responsible for disorder and chaos, and are sometimes represented as being
dull-witted. This is shown after all Prometheus’ efforts and cleverness; he
does not help mankind through his deceptions of Zeus. Not only is Prometheus
punished for the theft of fire, but he is also responsible for the suffering of
humans and for separating mankind from the ease of the divine world. In this
way, Prometheus’ story, in Dougherty’s words; ‘establishes the human world ‘as
it is’ – not as it should be’ [Dougherty (2006): 34]. Tricksters usually appear
as transformational figures, in which they personify the human struggle to make
the world more human. Their tales confirm the meaning of social order through
the recognition of that which avoids order. Dougherty expresses that the best
way to appreciate the nature of the trickster is to keep them within their own
cultural context and by doing this we can discover a lot more about that
culture. In terms of ancient Greek culture and Prometheus, his actions both
threaten and reaffirm the rules and conventions that constitute archaic Greek
culture, particularly the boundaries between humans and gods. Finally, it represents
the deception, trickery and the ambiguous nature of the human condition as the
Greeks conceived it.
Works cited:
Dougherty, C. (2006), Prometheus, ‘Gods and Heroes of the
Ancient World’, RoutledgeHesiod’s Theogony
Information about the Trickster Tale
Information on Kitsune
The Journal of American Folklore, ‘Fox Possession in Japan’, American
Folklore Society, Vol.13, No.50, Pp.222-5 (Available on JSTOR)
Grottanelli, C. (1983), ‘Tricksters, Scape-Goats, Champions, Saviours’,
History of Religions, The University of Chicago Press, Vol.23, No.2,
Pp117-139 (Available on JSTOR)
Pictures:
Kitsune womanRobin Hood 2
