So Zeus is
capable of growth where the other gods are not. Zeus also has his eyes on
humanity to be something special. After we factor in Prometheus, Pandora, all
the heroes, especially Hercules and Diomedes, the guy has been planning
something big. But why is he maneuvering behind the scenes? With Pandora he
concocted the idea that it was all a punishment. Why?
He hid his involvement with heroes
behind adulterous affairs, playing them off as nothing important beyond them
being his children. He didn’t raise them or pay any special attention to them.
Why?
Well, as we’ve seen, the Greek gods
are pretty petty. They lash out and inflict horrible punishments on mortals for
small crimes (poor, poor Teiresias). It’s just who they are. Not only that,
they fight amongst themselves. If they’re not lashing out at mortals who
committed crimes, they’re arguing with one another . . . and lashing out at
mortals in the process. In that respect, they really are a family, as some of
the worst fights in history happen inside of families.
Now, you’re Zeus (temporarily, so
don’t let the power go to your head or other places) you have a plan. It’s a
cunning plan. An intricate, cunning plan involving humanity that will take
hundreds of years (maybe thousands), requiring constant nudging in the process.
It’s very delicate. At any point, the whole thing could just collapse, and it’s
back to square one.
Do you tell your family, who are
fond of fighting with one another? Let’s not forget their habit of transforming
and punishing humanity on a whim. What are the odds that they are going to
think that this intricate, cunning plan is a good idea, especially since it
favors what the gods consider to be lesser beings? What are the odds that they
would understand this plan in the first place? I mean, I think Athena would get
it, but I’m not confident about the others, especially Ares or Dionysus.
He doesn’t have a choice but to
hide his plan because the others wouldn’t support it. They would completely
screw things up because they can’t get along with one another or because they
want to punish humanity. Zeus has to maneuver in unexpected ways, covering his
tracks with other actions. In this respect, he’s absolutely brilliant. He
disguises the creation of humanity’s role models with his own affairs, creating
the illusion that he cannot control himself, that he is a slave to his own
passions instead of carefully maneuvering things just right.
Pandora, including all of her godly
gifts, will be a punishment to humanity because she’ll let loose the plagues
that will ultimately teach humanity to overcome adversity, to rise to any
challenge, up to the point that Diomedes can openly challenge gods on a
battlefield.