Hesiods Works and Days is a didactic poem. Hesiod is one of the most famous poets of antiquity.[1] There are no exact dates for when this was written but it can be placed in the late 8th century BC.
I will be focusing on lines 42&108 it concentrates on Zeus’s anger towards Prometheus, so as a result takes fire from men. Prometheus however hides it in a fennel-stalk, leading Zeus to create the first woman (Pandora) as a punishment. Men need the fire to work and harvest. ‘The fields works by ox and sturdy mule would run to waste’. This highlights that their work would be pointless without fire. This is why Zeus takes it away from them as he knows how important it is. Prometheus didn’t have to trick Zeus by giving men the better part of the ox, because as it states in works and days ‘the gods keep hidden from men the means of life.’ This shows that men did not have or experience the luxuries that the Gods received. Thus even if the men received the white bones that were dressed to deceive they would have just accepted them. The question of why Prometheus tried to trick Zeus comes up. Was he looking out for mankind by trying to better their way of life? Or was he simply trying to outsmart Zeus and present himself just as sharp.
Zeus’s punishment to mean and Prometheus is the creation of Pandora, the first woman. Zeus describes her as an ‘evil thing’. ‘in which they may all be glad of heart’ shows that Pandora may seem beautiful and elegant on the outside, thus being a good thing not a punishment, but Zeus knows she will eventually be the destructor of man, pushing men into ‘their own destruction.’ This portrays women as evil and life sucking creatures. Pandora was created as the counterpart of fire. Both women and fire are very useful but highly dangerous to work with. The punishment shows that both gods and men can not try and outsmart Zeus and get away with it, as a punishment will always come of it. In the works and days Hesiod expands upon Zeus’s reaction to the theft of the fire. By hiding the fire from men he is hiding away their means of life. Taking away fire from the men is taking away their civilisation and the means of living. Simple tasks such as cooking and building would become impossible to do.
Prometheus is described as ‘crafty’ and ‘noble’. The word crafty instead of sly presents him as smart and witty instead of malicious and evil. As a result he is shown in a better light.
‘In the anger of his heart’ leads the reader to believe that Zeus as truly angry, with Prometheus trying to undermine his authority.
Aeschylus version of Prometheus is slightly different as “mankind does not only receive the fire from the fennel stalk, but also the subtler fire of reason and wisdom from which all aspects of human civilisation are derived”.[2]
Pandora can be compared to Eve from the biblical story of Adam and Eve. Both were beautiful but troublesome. They have both shaped the perception of female sex throughout history. “It has characterised women as being gifts for men”[3]. This contrasts with Hesiod’s view on Pandora and women, because even though she was seen as beautiful, she was a punishment as she would eventually lead men to their own destruction. Pandora’s and Eves identities are so similar that it is said that Pandora was used in creating the Biblical story.
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