Nature Versus Culture In 'The Bacchae Of Euripides'

Within the play The Bacchae there are two different sides of human nature that are emphasized, which are the civilized and the primal sides. The primal side seems to be emphasized through Dionysus who is the god of wine and festival and very fond of the effect each has on the body. When Dionysus arrives at the city he causes all of the women to go mad and travel up to the mountain to sing and dance in worship of him. Their behavior is described saying, “They’re gone—playing around in some meadow, calling out to Bromius, summoning their god.” (554-556). This shows that they seem to be reverting to their primal nature and acting savagely and out of character in the mountain. However, Pantheus is enraged at the behavior of the women and refuses to believe the divine powers that Dionysus has. He orders the women to be captured and punished for their actions. He believes that worshipping Dionysus is silly because he is not actually the son of Zeus so in his mind the whole ritual is crazy saying, “All the barbarians are dancing in these rites.” (600). Using the word barbarians displays his true belief because barbarians are remembered as savage and wild people who did not have any order in the way that they lived their life.

Greek myths are fascinating stories, they are stories of powerful men and women with powers. They teach us life lessons and how to get through problems in life. A good example is, odysseus and penelope, in the painting penelope and odysseus, heinrich uses penelope to reunite with odysseus to show that a secretive situation it causes distrust between 2 people, and causes them to separate, while in her poem “you are odysseus”, linda pastan uses the same scene to show that in order to have a healthy relationship, people must be there for each other. In “you are odysseus”, linda pastan uses imagery, to that people need communication to have a healthy relationship. Pastan states that penelope says “hide my songs under my tongue.”

Sarah Ruhl’s play, Eurydice, is a devastating story battling love, grief, life, and death. Although it is set during the 1950’s, the play manages to encompass the ancient Greek myth of Eurydice and Orpheus. The three most evident themes of this play are recurring death, fleeting happiness, and the power of love. The main conflict in this play is ultimately about the painful choice that comes with death; this is often caused by the King of the Underworld. One of the most impressive parts of this play is the ability to change the way the play is perceived through design.

Euripides’ play, The Bacchae, brings into perspective the Greek god, Dionysus. The play focuses on Dionysus wanting to establish his divinity in the city of Thebes, “Therefore I shall prove to him [Pentheus] and everyone in Thebes that I am god indeed” (47-49). As it can be seen here, Dionysus seeks to substantiate his divinity in the city that originally rejected him right from the get-go. He demonstrates this divinity through a very unique pathway, that pathway being vengeance. This course of vengeance leads him to manipulate various character's repressed desires. Dionysus uses these repressed desires in Thebes to enact his revenge on the city, but more specifically his own family. Albeit, repressed desires are not an actually character in The Bacchae, they arguably play one of the most important roles in the play. Dionysus brings out the repressed desires within Agave and Pentheus, and this ultimately shows their true character. He manipulates the two character’s repressed desires to fit his own agenda, which was mentioned earlier, and this is ultimately why he succeeds in his conquest for vengeance and the manifestation of his divinity to the city of Thebes. It also provides an explanation for why the two character’s behave the way that they do. It’s important to know your own desires so you cannot be easily manipulated and tricked like Agave and Pentheus were by Dionysus. If the two character’s would have known their own repressed desires, then arguably they would have

The only thing that I knew about Euripides prior to listening to this piece of music is that he is Athenian. That to me is one of the reasons why we are assigned to listen to this piece of music. Greece and its people were some of the most important people in the development of music. One of the key differences here as oppose to the other pieces of music is it takes a while to hear the first words of the song. For a person who is not patient, that might not be a good thing. One of the aspects of the piece of music that I enjoyed was the use of the instruments. When hearing it, it reminded me of Aladdin a bit for some reason. The only thing that was not likable was the words were not in English. However, that does happen in

Within the societies of ancient Greece and Rome, there was a plethora of regimes, Caesars, and empires at the helm of everyday life. The political sphere encountered in the daily routines of ancient Greeks and Romans gave influence to the multitude of literary works produced in these societies. The works of Euripides, Virgil, and Ovid gave a vehicle for these writers to infuse commentary about the politics of the day. Politics is how groups of people organize making decisions that affect the individuals contained within said groups. The Bacchae, the Aeneid, and Book 15 of Metamorphoses all contain commentary concerning politics within their content.

This novel alludes to many historical references, and also alludes to other examples of literature, philosophy, and mythology. The allusions within this story add to the story in a very positive way and make the story better for the reader by giving them something to relate and/or make a connection to, make the story more understandable for the reader, and add humor for the readers enjoyment. The novel most often alludes to the famous play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ written by

Through the forest have I gone. /But Athenian found I none, /On whose eyes I might approve /This flower's force in stirring love. /Night and silence.—Who is here? /Weeds of Athens he doth wear: /This is he, my master said, /Despised the Athenian maid; /And here the maiden, sleeping sound, /On the

    In ancient Greece the females were considered to be conniving and deceiving whisperers, and men almost never trusted their wives.  The ideal woman was an obedient and placating wife.  They believed that the female should be strong but still yield to the power of the male in charge, whether it was older brother, father, or husband.  Euripides often used females in uncommon ways; he did not simply show them as complacent animals.  Women in Euripides' plays were used for social commentary.  They were not just simple characters; they could be both agathos and kakos.  The females in the works of Euripides were extremely strong and devious and they were loyal but at the same time

The conflict between the rational and the irrational is present in every person or situation. In Greek tragedies, this conflict is constantly present within the characters’ actions and decisions. Usually, there is always one character that will act rationally compared to the others and would try to fix the conflict. Both The Eumenides and The Bacchae depict the conflict between the rational and the irrational, yet the act and solution are presented differently. Whereas The Eumenides portrays it through killing the family by committing matricide and homicide, The Bacchae portrays it through killing the family by committing unconscious homicide driven by the desire of the forbidden.

Greek tragedies Oedipus the King and Euripides’ Bacchae are both timeless stories in Greek literature. The engaging plot of both is what is most rememberable however the significance of the chorus is overlooked. The chorus can be defined simply as a group of dancers and singers that participate in dramas by singing poetically and lyrically in certain pauses of the play. The music, movements and gestures of the chorus symbolically define the mood and the themes of the play as the story line develops. The flow of Oedipus the King and Bacchae are dependent on the chorus, proving their significance.

Euripides Medea is a play that largely embodies themes of sex and gender within Greek life, marriage and society. Lars Von Trier, Danish Screen writer, controversially took on and altered Euripides' classic Medea in the form of film. Although complex and compelling, Von Trier's film fails to capture major themes and qualities presented in the text version of the infamous Medea and relay them to an audience. Through the use of close reading and comparison, it can be proved that Lars Von Trier's film depiction of Euripides' Medea does not allow an audience to see the complexity and major themes of gender and masculinity that Euripides originally portrays to his audience, but rather depicts a story of lost love and femininity within the protagonist.

Anyone who is familiar with Greek mythology has heard a story about tyrannous Zeus, throwing thunderbolts, turning people into animals, or causing other supernatural events while releasing his wrath. He proves time and time again that he is more powerful than any mortal who tries to compete with him. Though Zeus is the mightiest, there are stories about many other gods demonstrating their power over mortals. Two such gods are Apollo and Dionysus. In the stories "Oedipus Rex" and "The Bacchae", these gods conflict with men that are not just average mortals, but respected kings. Although the political position of these kings makes them feel superior to all, the gods in the two stories show them that immortals are far superior to any

choruses in their songs and dances.” Moreover, Aeschylus’s plays were known for their grand and beautiful language, complex plot structure, and their resonant themes. Their tragedies include the lives of individuals and their relationships to the gods. As shown in the Oresteia, the gods’ plans are carried out through human motives including the desire for vengeance. Importantly, the plays do not end in violence, but rather end in triumph in the rule of law, and in joy and reconciliation.

Euripides’ Cyclops probably would fit in nowadays public. Although the public don't have the same information about the background that the people in the past have, the information is not necessary to understand the play. Also Euripides criticize the society at his time, this is a similar characteristic that the play have with the actual society. Today, people criticize a lot the society, so this characteristic of the play shows that the criticism was always present in the society. Finally, the play is considered a satyr play, which principal characteristic is being really attractive making the audience pay attention all the time. Also, this type of play will have an unexpected action that will instigate the public. For these reasons, the play