External Forces In Bacchae

There are two external forces that control the universe in the Bacchae, man made traditions and the gods’ control of humanity. Euripides emphasizes that humanity needs to balance the laws and customs of civilization (reasoning) and the sensual and mystical forces of nature (“spiritual” exploration) in order to avoid chaos and self-destruction. He does this by contrasting masculine and feminine characteristics of Pentheus and the Maenads women, particularly Pentheus’ mother Agave. The inexperienced king, Pentheus, has the tragic flaw of having overconfidence when attempting to understand the situation or problem in front of him. He represents the extreme side of nomos and does not wish to change tradition. Pentheus attempts to control the uncontrollable, …show more content…
Agave, although is forced into the hysteria of Dionysus, tore off her son’s head “not by her own strength / no, the god gave a special ease to her hands.” (1127-1128). She tragically lets go of sanity and control, which cause her destruction. The mind is the most powerful tool humanity posses, for it has the ability to create and destroy, and Dionysus’s manipulation represents when one loses self-control. When Dionysus controls Agave’s mind, he causes her to envision her son’s head as the head of a lion. It is ironic that Pentheus’ head was imagined to be a lion, seen as confident, powerful, and full of pride, because although these characteristics are deemed highly in civilization, it was what caused Pentheus’s downfall. In addition, Agave was described to having the “speed of a dove” (1089) when attacking Pentheus. The dove symbolizes purity, the heavenly messenger, and grace; to have the women described as hunting as a pack of doves demonstrates that one’s inner desires can drastically change one’s intentions and character. The women felt empowerment and confidence under their possession, which terrified Pentheus because it prevented him from being in control. Since Agave and all the other Maenads women were strapped down by the rules and constraints of man made law, it caused them to significantly suffer the consequences of appealing to one’s natural instincts and …show more content…
This reflects the inconsistencies within humans. At the beginning of the tragedy Pentheus was stubborn, unwilling to accept the irrational and due to natural curiosity he indulged his sexual curiosity of the when dressing as a woman to spy on the Maenads. Agave, on the other end of the spectrum, weakly falls into passion and when she regains reason and custom law she lost all her confidence and power. There are duals within humans, both male and female inclinations that need to be controlled and release, and it is unwise to favor on side of oneself over the other. Reasoning and spiritual, psychological, or intellectual exploration should be kept in harmony or less one will either destroy one’s sanity or never acquire