Dionysiac Poetics and Euripides' Bacchae: Expanded Edition

By Charles Segal

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.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 069101597X
• ISBN13: 9780691015972
• Release Date: October 1997
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Length: 440 Pages
• Weight: 1.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.2" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Feels Very Nietzschean

I tend to agree with the previous review on this book, but I thought it worth mentioning that this text also feels VERY Nietzschean (from Birth of Tragedy). That is to say, Nietzsche's metaphysical principle of the Dionysian (in opposition to the Apollonian in BoT) seems to underwrite every chapter. This is fairly common, I suppose, since "Dionysian" is virtually synonymous with wild/ecstatic/irrational these days (largely because of Birth of Tragedy). But there. I said it. cheers.

so many ideas...so little time...

Charles Segal is acknowledged as one of the foremost authorities on Euripides' Bacchae, and has written several billion other articles on this subject and other themes in Greek literature. So he knows a thing or two. Now this helps, as just about any idea that one has while reading the Bacchae can be found dissected and pondered over in this book. Segal brings together psychoanalytical theory, ritualistic (a la Seaford) theory, and many, many others. However...it takes a while to read and some parts take a while to digest. Overall, though, it is very comprehensive and a must for anyone contemplating studying this fantastic play. One complaint: the bibliographies are great, but the afterword (of the 1997 edition) mentions some texts which aren't at the back, and one which doesn't even seem to exist!!! Gah! But, nice one, Mr Segal...sets the bar.