Remembering Prometheus and Antigone: Rebellion and Mercy. Basque Rewritings of Greek Myths during Times of Contemporary Political Conflict

Abstract : This paper aims to explain Basque artistic interpretations of the myths of Prometheus and Antigone and their close relationship to the political and ideological reality of the 60s and 70s in the Basque Country. Both Greek myths have been an endless source of artistic creation down to the present, mainly interpreting the heroes as representations of rebellion against the authority. Thus, it is not surprising that during Franco’s dictatorship some Basque nonconformist artists identified with these symbols of rebellion and rewrote them. However, as we will try to show by comparing Xabier Lete’s poetry and Jorge Oteiza’s sculpture, these Basque artistic interpretations of what originaly was rebellion underwent profound modifications that were closely connected to gender and religious issues.