Abstract

Our usual concept of ethics is usually associated with universal, stable, and non-contradictory principles. However, the human ethos is intrinsically dynamic, both due to the evolution of societies’ ideals and to unforeseen circumstances that sometimes surpass known moral norms and demand new courses of action. In this article, I will explain how these types of contradictions have been addressed in the myth of Prometheus and how its legacy has survived in Western tradition through literature, film, science, and its technological achievements. Specifically, I will explain how the myth is updated in the film "Oppenheimer." The objective is to show that in ethical matters, myth and science are not opposed, but rather complement each other, because scientific knowledge opens the doors to greater possibilities for action, which entails the need to broaden our evaluative horizons in the face of its consequences. This is where myth begins its pedagogical and instructive role, not so much to resolve dilemmas, but to show that moral systems and codes are not always flat and coherent.

Keywords: Prometheus | Oppenheimer | ethics | risk