From myth to symbol: the nineteenth century interpretation of prometheus

The aim of this research project is to examine the evolution of the various interpretations of the Prometheus figure during the 19^th century, leading to the Symbolist period, which appears as the coronation of the Titan.  Symbolism being a period animated by the dream of a fusion between the arts, a transdisciplinary approach was chosen, encompassing comparative literature, history of art, and music.  This reflects the Symbolist approach to art, and is the basis of an analysis of  the importance taken by Prometheus in the 19^th century, when the focus on the Titan shifted from the myth to the symbol. After an introductory chapter briefly detailing the constitution of the Prometheus myth and persona before the 19^th century, the thesis will examine how Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe's works on Prometheus were the first to radically change the perception of the Titan, by establishing him both as a creator and a rebel freed from any form of guilt.  The same chapter will demonstrate how, for Shelley and Byron, Prometheus was associated with the "Romantic Revolution", and how  he was used by Victor Hugo and Honoré de Balzac as a mask for the artist.  This leads, in the third chapter, to a consideration of Prometheus in relation to the Symbolist crisis of faith in Europe, and to the Symbolist syncretism which arose from it.  Eventually, in the last chapter, the many faces of Prometheus which emerged during the Symbolist period will be analyse:  his association with Jesus Christ;  the German vitalist Prometheus, his superimposition with Pygmalion in England;  and as a prism for the total artwork, as seen in the works of Frantisek Kupka and Alexander Scriabin.