Synopsis
The Bacchae written by Euripides takes you along a journey with the King Pentheus of Thebes and his mother Agave. The play opens with the god Dionysus, the son of Zeus. He is known as a symbol for wine, religious ecstasy, lust and irrationality. On the other hand, we have king Pentheus whose name means “Man of Sorrow” representing restraint and control.
So sit back and enjoy the unfolding of this tragedy as it explores the consequences faced when one stands by the extremes of restraining order or the frenzy pursuit of the irrational.
King Pentheus who prohibited the worship of Dionysus angers the god. Dionysus then arrives in town disguised as the stranger to punish the family for their treatment of his mother and their refusal to offer him sacrifices. Dionysus then tells the audience that when he arrived in Thebes he drove Semele's sisters mad, and they fled to Mt. Cithaeron to worship him and perform his rites on the mountainside. From here, Pentheus death begins to unfold during the first of three encounters between King Pentheus and Dionysus.
In Pentheus’s last encounter with Dionysus, the god tricks him to see the forbidden. Upon Dionysus suggestion, Pentheus dresses himself in a wig and long skirts. Once in the woods, Pentheus cannot see the bacchants from the ground, and is put on a tree by Dionysus for a better vantage. However, when the maenads see him, Dionysus orders them to attack the vulnerable ruler. The women then drag Pentheus to the ground. As he falls, Pentheus pleads with his mother to recognize her son. But Agaue, driven mad by Dionysus, proceeds to rip her son to death.
The tragedy ends with Agaue returning home with Pentheus's head in her hands. She is still deluded and boasts to all about the young lion she hunted and beheaded. Old Cadmus, who knows what has happened, brings Agaue to her senses leading her to weep over her stupidity. In the end, Dionysus finally appears in his true form to the city. He banishes Agaue from Thebes and ordains that Cadmus and his wife will turn into snakes, destined to invade Greek lands with a horde of barbarians.
The Bacchae written by Euripides takes you along a journey with the King Pentheus of Thebes and his mother Agave. The play opens with the god Dionysus, the son of Zeus. He is known as a symbol for wine, religious ecstasy, lust and irrationality. On the other hand, we have king Pentheus whose name means “Man of Sorrow” representing restraint and control.
So sit back and enjoy the unfolding of this tragedy as it explores the consequences faced when one stands by the extremes of restraining order or the frenzy pursuit of the irrational.
King Pentheus who prohibited the worship of Dionysus angers the god. Dionysus then arrives in town disguised as the stranger to punish the family for their treatment of his mother and their refusal to offer him sacrifices. Dionysus then tells the audience that when he arrived in Thebes he drove Semele's sisters mad, and they fled to Mt. Cithaeron to worship him and perform his rites on the mountainside. From here, Pentheus death begins to unfold during the first of three encounters between King Pentheus and Dionysus.
In Pentheus’s last encounter with Dionysus, the god tricks him to see the forbidden. Upon Dionysus suggestion, Pentheus dresses himself in a wig and long skirts. Once in the woods, Pentheus cannot see the bacchants from the ground, and is put on a tree by Dionysus for a better vantage. However, when the maenads see him, Dionysus orders them to attack the vulnerable ruler. The women then drag Pentheus to the ground. As he falls, Pentheus pleads with his mother to recognize her son. But Agaue, driven mad by Dionysus, proceeds to rip her son to death.
The tragedy ends with Agaue returning home with Pentheus's head in her hands. She is still deluded and boasts to all about the young lion she hunted and beheaded. Old Cadmus, who knows what has happened, brings Agaue to her senses leading her to weep over her stupidity. In the end, Dionysus finally appears in his true form to the city. He banishes Agaue from Thebes and ordains that Cadmus and his wife will turn into snakes, destined to invade Greek lands with a horde of barbarians.
Characters
- Dionysus
- Pentheus
- Agaue
- Cadmus
- Servant
- First Messenger
- Second Messenger
- Chorus
- Tiresias
Relationships
Gods and mortals
Mothers and sons
Fathers and daughters
Inter-generational relationships
Key Scenes
Agave killing her son
Dionysus seducing Agave
Dionysus v Pentheus
The mob attacking cattle
Key Questions
How do you decide what is right and what is wrong?
How far would you go to revenge when you have been wronged?
Playwrights Biography
Euripides was born in Athens, Greece, around 485 B.C. He became one of the best-known and most influential dramatists in classical Greek culture; of his 90 plays, 19 have survived. His most famous tragedies, which reinvent Greek myths and probe the darker side of human nature, include Medea, The Bacchae, Hippolytus, Alcestis and The Trojan Women. He died in Macedonia, Greece, in 406 B.C.Like all the major playwrights of his time, Euripides competed in the annual Athenian dramatic festivals held in honor of the god Dionysus. He first entered the festival in 455, and he won the first of his four victories in 441. He was acquainted with many of the important philosophers of the 5th century B.C., including Socrates, Protagoras and Anaxagoras, and he owned a large personal library.
Why did the playwright write the play?
“The Bacchae”, also known as “The Bacchantes” (Gr: “Bakchai”), is a late tragedy by the ancient Greek playwright Euripides, and it is considered one of his best works and one of the greatest of all Greek tragedies. It was probably written as early as around 410 BCE, but it only premiered posthumously at the City Dionysia festival of 405 BCE, where it won first prize. The story is based on the myth of King Pentheus of Thebes and his mother Agave, who are punished by the god Dionysus (also known as Bacchus) for refusing to worship him.
Gods and mortals
Mothers and sons
Fathers and daughters
Inter-generational relationships
Key Scenes
Agave killing her son
Dionysus seducing Agave
Dionysus v Pentheus
The mob attacking cattle
Key Questions
How do you decide what is right and what is wrong?
How far would you go to revenge when you have been wronged?
Playwrights Biography
Euripides was born in Athens, Greece, around 485 B.C. He became one of the best-known and most influential dramatists in classical Greek culture; of his 90 plays, 19 have survived. His most famous tragedies, which reinvent Greek myths and probe the darker side of human nature, include Medea, The Bacchae, Hippolytus, Alcestis and The Trojan Women. He died in Macedonia, Greece, in 406 B.C.Like all the major playwrights of his time, Euripides competed in the annual Athenian dramatic festivals held in honor of the god Dionysus. He first entered the festival in 455, and he won the first of his four victories in 441. He was acquainted with many of the important philosophers of the 5th century B.C., including Socrates, Protagoras and Anaxagoras, and he owned a large personal library.
Why did the playwright write the play?
“The Bacchae”, also known as “The Bacchantes” (Gr: “Bakchai”), is a late tragedy by the ancient Greek playwright Euripides, and it is considered one of his best works and one of the greatest of all Greek tragedies. It was probably written as early as around 410 BCE, but it only premiered posthumously at the City Dionysia festival of 405 BCE, where it won first prize. The story is based on the myth of King Pentheus of Thebes and his mother Agave, who are punished by the god Dionysus (also known as Bacchus) for refusing to worship him.