Work of psychological literary criticism written by R.J. Zwi Werblowsky
Satan in Paradise Lost, as illustrated by Gustave Doré
Lucifer and Prometheus is a work of psychological literary criticism written by R.J. Zwi Werblowsky and published in 1952. In it, Werblowsky argues that the Satan[note 1] of John Milton's Paradise Lost became a disproportionately appealing character because of attributes he shares with the Greek Titan Prometheus. It has been called "most illuminating" for its historical and typological perspective on Milton's Satan as embodying both positive and negative values.[1] The book has also been significant in pointing out the essential ambiguity of Prometheus and his dual Christ-like/Satanic nature as developed in the Christian tradition.[2]
Werblowsky uses the terminology of Carl Jung and his school in examining "mythological projections of the human psyche", though he emphasizes that he is not interested in the concept of the archetype in the strict Jungian sense. Rather, he sees the myth of figures such as Satan and Prometheus as expressing "the shortcomings … of the world as conceived by the human soul." The relation of power and civilization is explored through the interaction of the concepts of Old Testament sin and Greek hubris. In this analysis, Satan "becomes the sole power-exponent in this sublunar, post-lapsarian but pre-eschatological universe, and thus stands as the prototype of human civilizing effort."
Werblowsky sets out to explore "the heroic at its limits", and makes explicit the motivating factor of World War II and its horrors in undertaking this study:
Prometheus tortured (Jacob Jordaens, 1640)
The apocalyptic beast let loose has become a reality to our generation, and nobody knows what is still ahead of us. It is understandable therefore that books on the devil have been on the increase lately. … If the attempts of this school have not yet borne much fruit, it is because we fear the devil's sight more than his activity, and because of a very understandable reticence to force open our 'whited sepulchres.'[3]
Lucifer and Prometheus was one of 204 volumes in The International Library of Psychology, Philosophy and Scientific Method series published 1910–1965 and including titles from Jung, Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget, Erich Fromm and others. It was Werblowsky's first published book.[4] This volume was reissued in 1999 by Routledge. It includes an introduction written by Jung.
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
^Alessandro Bausani, "Islam in the History of Religions", Problems and Methods of the History of Religions (Brill, 1972), p. 62.
^Gedaliahu G. Stroumsa, "Myth into Metaphor: The Case of Prometheus", Gilgul: Essays on Transformation, Revolution and Permanence in the History of Religions (Brill, 1987), p. 311.
^The phrase "whited sepulchres" is an allusion to Matthew 23:27; it is used also in Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness.
^Stroumsa, Myth into Metaphor, p. 311.
and 23 Related for: Lucifer and Prometheus information
LuciferandPrometheus is a work of psychological literary criticism written by R.J. Zwi Werblowsky and published in 1952. In it, Werblowsky argues that...
affixed to Lucifer, the name of various mythological and religious figures associated with the planet Venus. The tradition usually reveres Lucifer not as...
mythology, Prometheus (/prəˈmiːθiəs/; Ancient Greek: Προμηθεύς, [promɛːtʰéu̯s], possibly meaning "forethought") is one of the Titans and a god of fire...
meaning for Lucifer in English is as a name for the Devil in Christian theology. It appeared in the King James Version of the Bible in Isaiah and before that...
Literature and the Politics of Family in Seventeenth-Century England (Cambridge University Press, 2007), p. 154 online; R.J. Zwi Werblowsky, Luciferand Prometheus...
attached to the play Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus, and Percy Shelley soon wrote his own Prometheus Unbound (1820). The term "Modern Prometheus" was derived from...
Law for content published in his anarchist periodical Lucifer the Lightbearer. He was arrested and jailed multiple times for publishing allegedly obscene...
Scribe) 1832 music by Albert Lortzing Zwi Werblowsky, R. J. (1999). LuciferandPrometheus: A Study of Milton's Satan. ISBN 9780415209489. "Op. 71 Scaramouche"...
while Lucifer impotently threatens Dipper and makes fun of his name. Dipper eventually returns to find Castiel andLucifer arguing andLucifer's stick...
Satan, also known as the Devil and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an entity in Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or...
Operation Lucifer is an adventure published by Timeline in 1982 for the post-apocalyptic role-playing game The Morrow Project. In The Morrow Project,...
Dead, The Blacklist, Notorious, Lucifer, Grey's Anatomy, Teen Wolf, Blindspot, Eyewitness, This Is Us, Frequency and The Vampire Diaries, an advertisement...
Started The Sixties, and three books on human evolution and group behavior: The Genius of the Beast, Global Brain, and The Lucifer Principle. Bloom was...
Shelley's Prometheus Unbound, a four-act play depicting the Titan, more or less mingled with the Lucifer of Milton's Paradise Lost, a champion of moral and humanitarian...
in his journal Lucifer-Gnosis from 1904 to 1908, where he wrote about Atlantis and Lemuria, topics related to their purported history and civilization....
personality quality of extreme or excessive pride or dangerous overconfidence and complacency, often in combination with (or synonymous with) arrogance. The...
connections and family resemblances" with the Left Hand Path milieu of other occult figures such as Chaos, Hecate, Lilith, Lucifer, and Set. For centuries...
it depicts Eve as a figure reminiscent of both Lucifer (in her rebellion against God) andPrometheus (in bringing knowledge to humanity). ORO, divided...
Constantine, John Diggle, and Mia Smoak arrive on Earth-666 to enlist Lucifer's help in entering Purgatory. A critical and commercial success, Watchmen...
200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved October 10, 2014. "Sir Sly – Chart History: Alternative Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media....
Gaiman uses Lucifer as a character, most notably in the Season of Mists arc/collection, and makes reference to the poem, having Lucifer openly quote...
Blum is an American voice actor with roles in films, television series, and video games. Skylanders roles are reprising for later releases. "Bang Zoom...
Trinity. During a system-wide rebellion instigated by Lucifer, the so-called "war in heaven," Lucifer's emblem was a banner of white with one red circle,...