Bacchae

Introduction

This great work of classical Greek theater is a profound reflection on faith, fanaticism, and human nature.

Considered by many to be Euripides’s most important work, The Bacchae has been rousing audiences since the fifth century BC. Appearing in human form, the Greek god Dionysus has come to seek vengeance on his mortal cousin, Pentheus, King of Thebes. The Greek ruler has proclaimed that, far from being the son of Zeus, Dionysus is a mere mortal. Angered at the insult, the god initiates the Theban women in Dionysian rites, inspiring them to ecstatic dance and wild abandon—mysterious acts that will tempt Pentheus—even as he is lured to his tragic end.

Controversial in its time and innovative in structure, The Bacchae was written after Euripides’s exile from Athens and published posthumously. Today it stands as one of the more provocative and poetic Greek tragedies by a writer whose intriguing plots and keen psychological insight make him the more modern of the ancient authors.