Intensive argumentative writing drawn from controversy stimulated through selected readings and class discussion. Satisfies the second half of the Reading and Composition requirement.

The mythic figure of Prometheus—punished by Zeus for stealing fire from the gods and bringing it to humans—has long outlived its ancient Greek provenance. An object of intense fascination among artists, poets, and political radicals of both the left and right for centuries, he continues to be invoked most frequently today as the patron saint of technological developments (such as nuclear weapons, AI, or fossil fuels) that risk transgressing some natural, supernatural, or moral order. This class will examine why the figure of Prometheus still exerts such a strong hold on collective imaginaries in a supposedly post-mythic age, often becoming a symbol of modernity itself. This paradoxical self-mythologization of modernity, in relation to societies it considers premodern, demands fresh attention at a time of increasing competition among world visions. After familiarizing ourselves with the classical sources and some key scholarship, we will turn to the appropriation of the myth in British and German Romantic literature as a representation of creative genius and political-theological liberation. Then, we will consider how this Romantic retelling serves as the starting point for three further appropriations: 1) by Marx and the revolutionary tradition growing out of industrial capitalism; 2) as an antislavery figure in American abolitionist and Black Atlantic revolutionary discourse of the 19th and early 20th century; 3) as an ambivalent register of technological anxieties, from Mary Shelley to Bernard Stiegler. We will read and learn to research and argue across disciplines, ranging from literary studies, post-secular studies and political theology, African-American studies, and philosophy. In ways that we will discern and critically interrogate, this minor god from an ancient myth remains at the center of debates about what it means to be modern and human.

Requisites

• Previously passed an R1A course with a letter grade of C- or better. Previously passed an articulated R1A course with a letter grade of C- or better. Score a 4 on the Advanced Placement Exam in English Literature and Composition. Score a 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Exam in English Language and Composition. Score of 5, 6, or 7 on the International Baccalaureate Higher Level Examination in English.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills