According to the Greek poet Hesiod, the Titan demi-god Prometheus was responsible for the creation of men. He manufactured them from clay, from the natural earth. When Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus, she left little doubt that the creator of the monster, Victor Frankenstein, by making a living creature from inaminate parts was a new Prometheus. But her metaphor extends beyond the immediately obvious. In Hesiod’s myth, Prometheus had an inflated sense of self importance and was determined to be adored by men. Because men had no control over fire they were destined to remain mere animals. The forbidden knowledge of fire