Pentheus

they drive the plot forward. However the messenger is also able to comment on scenes he describes, and in doing so exhibits a form of ‘sophia’. He sees the power of the maenads first-hand and understands the terrible greatness of Dionysus and urges Pentheus to accept the god: “sire, welcome him to Thebes. For he is great…” He too exhibits the wisdom of Cadmus and Teiresias, the ‘sophia’ of understanding the need for acceptance, and the dangers of denying a deity. Another essential group of characters

The Chorus first alludes to the traditional place of Athenian women with the statement, "driven from shuttle and loom, / possessed by Dionysus!" (118-199), and Pentheus later employs the same motif when threatening, "I shall have them sold as slaves or put to work / at my looms" (513-514). Such a deliberate analogy amidst the clash of divine and earthly power seems to highlight the woman's domesticated place and

The Hymn to Dionysus gives readers a general idea of who Dionysus is and what he is capable of, but a further dimension is added to his character after reading the Bacchae. The Bacchae shows readers that Dionysus is a force of nature and determined to establish himself. Euripides only adds to the intensity of Dionysus and the play in general by making him completely unrepentant for what he’s done and giving the mortals particularly harsh punishments for committing relatively insignificant acts.

madness by forcing them to partake in his cult. With his vengeance, Dionysus reciprocates the city’s actions by submerging its citizens—women, elders, and the ruler, Pentheus—into what it truly means to be foreign. It is important to note that the Thebans refer to those who are not Greek as barbarians because, according to Pentheus, foreigners simply “are more ignorant than Greeks” (482 pg. 38). They believe that foreigners do not possess the ability to build a civilization as grand as that of Greece;

This play written by Euripides has several little main ideas throughout but one of the main ones that I am going to focus on is the disguise and trickery Dionysus is able to perform to get what he wants. Throughout the play Dionysus never got the respect that he felt that he deserved from the other gods. The reason that Dionysus received no respect is because he is mortal; his mother who was a mortal gave birth to him by a god, so in the world they are living in this makes him equal to the humans

being all lead up to the lesson that every action has a consequence. The first major example of this in the very beginning when Dionysus, in front of Pentheus’ palace where the tomb of Semele resides, began to discuss his origin. He says, “...For I have come to refute that slander spoken by my mother’s sisters... They

ultimately leads to the destruction of the society. In his article, The Menace of Dionysus: Sex Roles and Reversals in Euripides’ Bacchae, Charles Segal argues that Euripides is criticizing the rigid Athenian gender hierarchy, mainly focusing on how Pentheus’ and society’s fear of femininity leads to the suppression of females that ultimately causes the disintegration and destruction of society in the play. Women in “The Bacchae” were feared by males “because they [were] seen as closer to the basic biological

switches the roles in both plays. In The Bacchae the woman worship Dionysus. Pentheus disguises himself as a woman, and goes off to view the women in the mountains, which is Dionysus plan the whole time. Pentheus dresses up as a woman and admits to wanting to see the women up at the mountains, and this goes against Pentheus’ anger at the beginning of the play (Bacchae 813-814). In the end of the play the women overpower Pentheus and destroy him to pieces (Bacchae 1125-1140). This is an example of the

members dangling from the pines,” (Euripides 102). This scene was more than enough to warrant Pentheus’ fear. However Pentheus’ initial reaction prior to the women slaughtering the cattle was to capture and put them in jail. “The ones I’ve rounded up, my police have handcuffed and safely slapped in jail. I’ll capture them in iron traps to put a stop to this immoral rollicking,” (Euripides 87). Pentheus associates order with enclosed areas and disorder/ immoral behaviour with unbounded areas, such

certainly true with respect to the characters of Pentheus, Antigone, and Oedipus. All three of these characters demonstrate, through their actions, various degrees of arrogance that seem to undercut the traditional role of the Gods, and thus largely contribute to their downfall. However, it should be noted that while each of these characters demonstrate hubris, they way in which their arrogance manifests itself is unique to each character.   Pentheus, the authoritarian newly appointed king of