Page 42 - English Expedition Class 4

6 The Legend of Prometheus

Every culture has interesting stories on the origin of the universe and the creation of man.
In Greek mythology there is a belief that the Titan Prometheus created man out of clay.
Let us read the Greek myth on the creation of man and the discovery of fire.

A long time ago, the Titans lived

among the mountains in Greece.
Once, they grew angry with their
king Zeus and wished to take his
throne away from him. There was
a wise Titan named Prometheus

who begged them not to attempt 1
to do this. He tried to show them
how foolish they were, but they

would not listen to him.
Zeus lived upon Mount
Olympus, the highest mountain
in Greece. The Titans brought
great rocks to this mountain and

piled them up, higher and higher,
until they reached the sky. Zeus
waited until they had finished

their work and were ready for the battle. Then he lifted his mighty hand and touched
2
the great mound . Instantly, it fell over into the sea. Thus, Prometheus and his brother
Epimetheus were now the only creatures on earth.
Soon, Prometheus and Epimetheus started feeling lonely, so Zeus told them to
model some people from clay. Prometheus made animals and men, and Epimetheus

gave them gifts of courage, swiftness and strength. To some he gave feathers and wings,
to others fur and claws, and to some others a hard shell covering. When he came to
man, he had no covering left.

Zeus said, ‘I will clothe man,’ and he gave them a delicate and beautiful covering.

1 attempt: make an eff ort 2 mound: a heap of rocks and soil
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