Euripides: Bakkhai

Euripides' "Bakkhai" is the staple of the canon of Greek tragedy, as its structure and thematics offer exemplary models of the classic tragic elements.

The plot of "Bakkhai" centres around the actions of Pentheus, King of Thebes, who refused to recognize the god Dionysus or permit Thebans to worship him.

In revenge, Dionysus drove Pentheus mad, made him cross-dress as a maenad, sent him to worship the god he had spurned, and made his mother, Agave, mistake him for a wild beast and rip him to shreds.