Prometheus Unchained

On The Endless Battle Between Modernity and Tradition

In ancient Greece, they told of the legend of Prometheus. From the heights of Olympus, the gods lived in opulence and abundance, ruling over all of creation with impunity. Humanity, by contrast, lived in squalor and precarity. Mortals were hardly removed from beasts, living a grim existence of subsistence and feared the night and the creatures it contained as much as they feared the fickle whims of the gods. Their prayers fell on death ears when they asked for aid, however. But Prometheus, unlike his kin on Mount Olympus, heard the prayers of humanity and was moved by their plight. In secret, he took the sacred fire from the hearth of Olympus and brought it to humanity. With the gift of fire, humanity no longer needed to fear the dark. They were able to cook their food, forge tools and bend nature to their will as the gods’ bent mortals to theirs.

However, no good deed goes unpunished. Zeus, king of the gods, took notice of humanity and their newfound freedom. But liberation from fear of the dark was not all that the gift of fire brought. Zeus saw that with fire, humanity had forged weapons of war as well as tools to till the earth. Thanks to Prometheus, humanity also began to wage war with the weapons they created. The gift of fire was as much a curse as it was a blessing. For bringing fire to mortals, Prometheus was cursed in kind. He was chained to a mountain where every day, an eagle would savage him, devouring his liver. Every day, his liver grew back and every day it was consumed again. An eternal punishment for the one who gave humanity a piece of divinity.

The legend of Prometheus was first told during the Bronze Age, an era in human history defined by stark violence and primal struggle. Like all great myths, it spoke truth through a narrative that those hearing it would have understood intuitively. This was a world where brutality reigned, and humanity had only just begun to tame the chaos of nature. Civilization had only just begun to flourish, and the memories of a more savage existence lingered heavily. The fires around which our ancestors once gathered for warmth and protection had been replaced with the relative safety of homes and fortified city walls. However, those walls no longer shielded against wild beasts but against the more dangerous and unpredictable threat: other human beings. Rival civilizations posed grave risks, but an even greater menace lay in the barbarian hordes, tribes who rejected the safety of civilization in favor of the boundless freedom offered by a nomadic existence.

This struggle between the civilized city dwellers and the barbarian nomads was a ubiquitous fixture in human society right up until the advent of gunpowder and modernity. The bronze age civilizations of Egypt, Mycenae, Assyria and Babylon were defeated by the mysterious, barbaric sea peoples. The Romans were brought low by the Germanic tribes and later the Hun. The Jin Chinese dynasty was defeated at the height of their power by the Mongols. The golden age of the Islamic civilizations was crushed under the hooves of the Mongol horde. The Kievan Rus- precursors to the Russian empire- were defeated and enslaved by the Mongols. A lot of civilizations were defeated by the Mongols, actually. This was the primordial human conflict between civilization and the untamed barbarians, that of the struggle between those who would give up freedom for safety against those who spurned safety for freedom. The battle between order and chaos.

But in the modern day, it seems that the tides have turned in favor of order in this ancient struggle. Barbarians at the gate are no longer the existential threat they were in antiquity, and humanity has overcome many of its other ancient foes. Diseases that once decimated populations have been cured or made less deadly, and advancements in medicine have worked wonders that our ancestors would have seen as miracles. While hunger and poverty have not been eradicated, they have been reduced and are much less severe than what people of previous eras experienced. Although world peace remains a seemingly impossible dream, we no longer live in the brutal struggle of all against all that defined much of human history. The past was marked with hierarchy, segregation and social immobility. But now, while there is still social and financial inequality, many of the barriers that held people back based on race, class, gender or sexuality have been lifted. We are no longer bound by the chains of the circumstances of our birth and are free to make our own way in the world as we see fit. We are more free now than ever before in human history. But what do we do with that freedom?

Modernity has brought many advancements in personal freedom, liberating people from traditional identities and restrictive social norms. Yet, this progress was not without its cost. As society moves away from community ties based on nationality, race, or religion, feelings of isolation and deracination have increased. Women have gained unprecedented rights, but studies show that happiness among women has declined at the same time. Freedom to move and live anywhere has created excitement and opportunity for some, but for others it has eroded any sense of belonging. While conservative views on gender and sexuality have softened, gender relations are more strained than ever before. Contraception has separated sex from its traditional consequences, yet marriage rates have fallen, and single motherhood has risen. The traditional family life once seen as stifling is now increasingly an unaffordable luxury. Even as acceptance of homosexuality reaches new heights, the promiscuous sexual culture associated with that community’s marginalization has permeated mainstream heterosexual life, weakening pair bonding and raising divorce rates. Addiction, suicide, and despair have become pervasive features of modern life.

How can we reconcile the seemingly opposing forces of modernity and tradition? These traditional roles, though restrictive, provided people with a clear sense of place and order in life. Now, as we forge our own paths, we often find ourselves lacking meaningful structures to replace them. So, is there a way to preserve the positive aspects of both? Some argue that modernity is a grave mistake, advocating for a return to more traditional ways of living. Like Zeus, they perceive the negative consequences that stem from the promethean gifts of modern progress-unleashed fire that needs to be controlled and contained. These people often reference the writings of the philosopher G.K. Chesterton, who introduced the idea of "Chesterton’s Fence." This concept suggests that one shouldn’t tear down a fence unless they fully understand the reasons it was built. In other words, they argue that many of the socially conservative norms from the past were established for good reasons, acting as protective measures rather than arbitrary constraints. And it’s hard to deny the self-evident drawbacks that accompany some of our social and technological advancements, making the argument for preserving certain traditions compelling. Yet, there is always more than one side to a story- and similarly, there are two sides to every fence.

For better or for worse, It‘s not possible or even desirable to return to a pre-modern world. Just as one could make the argument that the constraints on freedom in the past existed for a reason, the progress that has been made in favor of security happened for a reason as well. While it ‘s true that perhaps in the past it was easier to find community and purpose, there were also darker aspects. The lessons of the past have been hard learned and one cannot separate the positive aspects of the past with the brutal realities it also stood for. For example, feudalism was one of the most stable social orders to ever exist. However, it was also one of the most repressive. While it could be tempting to imagine either going back to an idealized, pre-modern past or moving past the constraints of our current time to an idealized future, reality will require a compromise between modernity and tradition. We will need to find a way to integrate both order and chaos to make peace between the desire for freedom and security that exists in us all.

So, where can we start in trying to find this compromise? It’s easy to believe that our ancestors were all simpletons, but I believe that these traditional forms of living became ubiquitous for a reason. One could think of tradition as the collective troubleshooting process of the human race to find a way of living that works the best for the highest number of people. In other words, traditions are merely experiments that worked. This involves monogamous pair bonding, a family structure both nuclear and extended as its base. Some sort of religious, spiritual or philosophical framework that is agreed upon by society. Another near universal good is material security and meaningful work that those doing it can see the practical, concrete results of. There is also a need for community past that of the immediate and extended family, approximately consisting of one hundred and fifty people (also known as the “Dunbar Number”) that is optimized for the human brains’ capacity for social relationships. These factors seem to be one of the most effective ways to fulfill human desire and allow us to flourish. In other words, smaller, intentional communities are a reliable way to fulfill Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Of course, there are issues with this. The condition of modernity can make many of these goals very difficult to obtain. The high costs of living and forced hyper connectivity of the modern world can make this task seem insurmountable. Relationships both romantic and platonic have become harder to come by and making genuine connections has become more and more difficult. In addition, these things have not always been accessible to all people. Some were excluded from this because of factors outside of their control such as their sexuality or inability to have children. We will also need to make these communities equitable for both women and men to make the proposition attractive. This is where the compromise between modernity and tradition will come into play.

To find the compromise between freedom and security, we will need to take what is useful from both the past and the present to create a better future. There have been some writers and thinkers who have addressed this.

Alex Kaschuta

recently spoke with writer Aria Babu on her podcast where she discussed what might make a pro-natalist future more attractive for women. Feminist writer

Louise Perry

has also written at length about ways to make traditional roles for women more attractive to them and more equitable. We will also need to find ways to give men reasons to be invested in society again. Right now, men dropping out of the workforce and society at large is an increasingly serious problem. Writers like

Richard V Reeves

and Jordan Peterson have written about this problem as well as possible solutions. I’ve even written about the topic myself and what I see the solution to the male identity crisis is

Marco Pierre White, famous chef and restaurateur, once said that cooking is less about reading a recipe and more about following a philosophy. Much in the same way, I can’t tell you exactly what creating an intentional community will look like for you. Everyone has their own balance of freedom and security, and one person’s paradise is another’s torment. Just as there are many ways to have a family, there can be many ways to create a community. For some people, the idea of a fulfilling life is deeply connected with traditional values and community structures. They may choose to live in rural areas, fostering connections rooted in traditional relationships and religious traditions. Yet, this lifestyle is neither desirable nor realistic for everyone. Factors such as sexual orientation, economic constraints, an affinity for urban living, or even an alternative outlook on life may make the conventional approach unappealing or out of reach. Nonetheless, I believe that the essence of a smaller, purposeful community remains possible. Even in bustling cities, intentional communities can flourish within a few city blocks, cultivating a sense of belonging and shared purpose. Whether it takes the form of a polyamorous lesbian commune in Vermont, a church potluck or a block party, the important part is the community's intentionality and manageable scale, rather than any specific cultural or relational framework.

So, where does that leave us? I’ve talked to people of many ages, ethnicities, backgrounds and political orientations and hear similar sentiments, so what I’m proposing isn’t especially radical. In fact, the idea of stepping back from the rat race, curbing the more corrosive aspects of modernity and forming communities around intentional living is so common that it’s become a cliché. In fact, this desire is a ubiquitous fixture of modernity and it’s not difficult to find similar sentiments in Victorian England or even in pre-modern sources. You can even read ancient Roman accounts about the desire to get away from the hustle and bustle of the decadent city in order to live a more simple, virtuous life in the countryside. To some, this may be disheartening that we’ve been having the same conversation for hundreds or even thousands of years. After all, if we haven’t found a solution yet, what are the chances we ever will? Especially since the creature comforts of modernity make community so much more difficult to come by and isolation so much easier to tolerate. I don’t feel that way, however. I feel a sense of purpose and connection to both the past and the future. This struggle is one that’s universal to the human condition. It’s something that bronze age sheep herders dealt with as well as Ming dynasty Chinese bureaucrats and Amazon warehouse workers of the present day. If humanity doesn’t wipe itself out, this could be something future generations ponder as they entertain the idea of leaving the colony on Mars for a more traditional life in the mega-cities of old earth.

This task will not be an easy one. We are standing at a crossroads, facing one of the most striking contrasts between modernity and tradition that humanity has ever encountered. Yet, this struggle is not only necessary but worthwhile. Perhaps, it is in this very struggle that we will find purpose in the next chapter of human existence. Even Prometheus, who defied the gods to gift humanity with fire, required the strength of Hercules- the son of a god and a mortal- to be released from his torment. As part of his legendary labors, Hercules freed Prometheus as an act of gratitude, recognizing the value of the knowledge he received. In return, Zeus gave Prometheus a ring made of iron and stone- a permanent reminder of his suffering and its lessons. Perhaps this symbol holds the key for us as well-to embrace freedom while carrying the wisdom of our past. To be unchained, yet always remembering the reasons those chains were forged. This delicate balance could be our path forward, uniting the best of tradition and modernity as we forge a new future.