Hard work is important. Innovation drives progress. Truth is derived from evidence. These concepts form the basis of Western thought, but where did they come from?

In Forging Promethean Psychology, Bruce Lerro analyzes the origins of Western civilization's most basic values-including individualism, capitalism, and reason-by tracing them back to the Greek myth of Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity. Lerro argues that Western civilization developed the way it did by embracing Prometheus's legacy; in other words, we steal fire every day in the form...