Dionysiac Poetics and Euripides' Bacchae
eBook - PDF

Dionysiac Poetics and Euripides' Bacchae

Expanded Edition

  1. English
  2. PDF
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

Dionysiac Poetics and Euripides' Bacchae

Expanded Edition

About this book

In his play Bacchae, Euripides chooses as his central figure the god who crosses the boundaries among god, man, and beast, between reality and imagination, and between art and madness. In so doing, he explores what in tragedy is able to reach beyond the social, ritual, and historical context from which tragedy itself rises. Charles Segal's reading of Euripides' Bacchae builds gradually from concrete details of cult, setting, and imagery to the work's implications for the nature of myth, language, and theater. This volume presents the argument that the Dionysiac poetics of the play characterize a world view and an art form that can admit logical contradictions and hold them in suspension.

Frequently asked questions

Yes, you can cancel anytime from the Subscription tab in your account settings on the Perlego website. Your subscription will stay active until the end of your current billing period. Learn how to cancel your subscription.
No, books cannot be downloaded as external files, such as PDFs, for use outside of Perlego. However, you can download books within the Perlego app for offline reading on mobile or tablet. Learn more here.
Perlego offers two plans: Essential and Complete
  • Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
  • Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Both plans are available with monthly, semester, or annual billing cycles.
We are an online textbook subscription service, where you can get access to an entire online library for less than the price of a single book per month. With over 1 million books across 1000+ topics, we’ve got you covered! Learn more here.
Look out for the read-aloud symbol on your next book to see if you can listen to it. The read-aloud tool reads text aloud for you, highlighting the text as it is being read. You can pause it, speed it up and slow it down. Learn more here.
Yes! You can use the Perlego app on both iOS or Android devices to read anytime, anywhere — even offline. Perfect for commutes or when you’re on the go.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access Dionysiac Poetics and Euripides' Bacchae by Charles Segal in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literature & Ancient & Classical Literary Criticism. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
54 
DOUBLING, 
HUNTING, 
RITUALS
In 
all 
these 
passages 
an 
intensely 
searching 
spirit 
is 
at 
work 
that 
is
in 
its 
own 
way 
also 
intensely 
religious. 
In 
these 
works, 
and 
most 
of
all 
in 
the
Bacchae,
Euripides 
is 
trying 
to 
grasp 
the 
"multiple 
forms"
of 
man's 
need 
for 
gods 
and 
for 
definitions 
of
gods.
He 
is 
asking 
what
divinity 
is, 
how 
it 
manifests 
itself 
to 
men, 
and 
how 
men 
see 
it 
and
comprehend 
it 
within 
the 
means 
and 
terms 
of 
human 
passion 
and
understanding, 
moral 
consciousness, 
civic 
institutions, 
and 
language.
In 
addition 
to 
the 
special 
traits 
of 
the 
maenadic 
cult, 
the 
Dionysus 
of
the
Bacchae,
is 
also 
that 
in 
the 
divine 
which 
inspires 
yearning 
and
fascination 
but 
always 
remains 
beyond 
our 
grasp.

Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. Half-title Page
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright Page
  5. Dedication Page
  6. Contents
  7. Preface to the Expanded Edition
  8. Preface
  9. Abbreviations
  10. Introduction
  11. 1. The Elusive God
  12. 2. Forms of Dionysus: Doubling, Hunting, Rituals
  13. 3. Dionysus and Civilization: Tools, Agriculture, Music
  14. 4. The Horizontal Axis: House, City, Mountain
  15. 5. The Vertical Axis: Earth, Air, Water, Fire
  16. 6. Arms and the Man: Sex Roles and Rites of Passage
  17. 7. Metatragedy: Art, Illusion, Imitation
  18. 8. The Crisis of Symbols: Language, Myth, Tragedy
  19. 9. Dionysiac Poetics and Euripidean Tragedy
  20. Afterword
  21. Selected Bibliography
  22. Bibliographical Addenda
  23. Index