Bacchae

Moral-Social Values in The Bacchae One prevailing argument about The Bacchae as with many of his other works is whether Euripides propounds a revolutionary or a reactionary message about society. This outlook, however, is skirting an essential element of The Bacchae's theme. The moral-social values affirmed in Euripedes' play are political only so far as philosophy itself is political. Euripides investigates the dichotomy between Pentheus and Dionysus. This conflict is used as a medium for …

…the worship of Dionysus. “ . . . no argument of yours/ shall ever make me spar with gods (ll 324-5)." "We stay close to the hallowed tenets of our fathers:/ as old as time (ll 201-2)." Various comments throughout the play, such as Tiresias' accusation that many laugh at his celebration of Dionysian ritual, are indicative that the acetic social construct is widely accepted. Those who are not subject to this facade, however, still yield to another illusion.