Prometheus differs from his brother, Epimetheus, in many ways. Because of his forethought—which is what his name means—he is able to see the potential consequences of his, and others', actions. When Zeus gives Epimetheus the task of creating all the animals of the earth, Epimetheus, whose name means afterthought, gives away all of the good, strong qualities to the animals: the sharp claws to tear meat, the sharp fangs to eat with, the thick hides to keep warm, and so on. When he gets around to creating humans, there are no such qualities left, so he asks his brother for help. Prometheus not only gives humans the ability to walk upright on two legs, like the gods, but he also steals some fire from the sun and gives it to the humans so that they can cook their food—no longer needing sharp fangs or claws—and keep themselves warm: no longer needing thick hides for this purpose.

There are several stories in which Prometheus basically saves humanity: when Zeus decides to flood the earth to get rid of the impious humans, Prometheus tells his son and niece what to do to survive the flood; he also tricks Zeus into choosing the worst meat for himself, and so humans get to keep the best meat rather than sacrifice it. He even tells his brother never to accept anything from the wily Zeus, but Epimetheus doesn't listen, and this is how Pandora ends up opening the box that contains all the evils of the world.

Prometheus considers the consequences of his actions rather than acting impulsively, unlike his brother. Furthermore, he truly seems to care about the human race and their best interests, unlike his brother who is really only interested in himself.