CLAS 1P95 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Pentheus, Euripides, Maenad
19 Feb 2016
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The hymn to dionysus portrays him as angry, revengeful, and violent but also as a benefactor towards mankind. It seems that if dionysus feels that he is being respected by men then he will bestow kindness upon them but if he feels insulted he will enact revenge against them in the most terrible of ways. In the hymn he takes revenge on his captor for insulting him but takes pity on one helmsman who recognized his divinity and warned the others against angering him. Since dionysus is the god of wine it makes sense that he would have this duel nature. Wine can be both wonderful and terrible at the same time just as dionysus can be. Wine can bring joy, ecstasy, and liberty but also, if consumed in excess, it can lead to anger, violence, and regret. In this play his duel nature is also expressed.
