The play's second, shorter choral passage (just two pairs of strophes and antistrophes) opens with a technique I've briefly covered before, the transformation of a concept into a divinity. Holiness, the divine power that makes a god a god, is addressed directly, and with good purpose. To this point, the central issue of the narrative has been establishing the divine status of Dionysus (whether the play ends on the same point is another argument altogether). This technique is stressed further into the ode, where Desire (pothos) and Peace (irene) receive the same treatment.
Beyond this, the chorus delivers two alternating messages: the strophes concentrate on the peace which Dionysus delivers to man and wish for an escape to Cyprus, where the question of whether or not the Bacchae would be persecuted would be meaningless. The second strophe mixes the typical qualities of Dionysiac cult with a wish to be in the land of Aphrodite, near to deities of love and desire. This raises the question of how interconnected these two forms of worship were, especially since the chastity of the Bacchae is stressed on numerous occasions within the play. Dodds argues that "in the present context she is a symbol not of sensuality but of the happiness and liberation which comes from the gay and reverent acceptance of natural impulse. Her association with Dion., the other great Nature-power, is rooted both in popular thought and in the imagination of poets and artists" (123). I don't find this particularly believable, and would be inclined to see Euripides' portrayal of his maenads as slightly more complex.
The antistrophes focus more on what might be described as universal truths: what is good in life, how one can lead a good life, the nature of man's relationship to the gods. There are some beautiful thoughts here, although my personal favorites are later in the text.
In the next dialogue scene, we have a nameless attendant, a variation on the messenger character, a typical member of a Greek play's dramatis personae who usually delivers information about offscreen events (In this case, the capture of Dionysus). These characters also provide us a possible window into Greek social history, as they are typically the only lower-class characters present in a Greek play.
We also see the return of a particular type of exchange seen earlier in the scene between Tiresias and Cadmus: a series of single-line sentences which respond to each other. Here it occurs between the captive Dionysus and his interrogator Pentheus, and it functions as the mechanism by which the god torments his human opponent. The term for this interchange is stichomathia (stick-oh-math-ee-ah), and it often focuses on a concept called the icthus (ick-toos), or crudely the "thwack", wherein each sentence contains a central word or idea, which is then picked up by the next sentence and manipulated by the other speaker. Obviously not all sentences in stichomathia have an icthus, and some of the Greek wordplay does not translate well to English, so not every sentence will display this pattern. However, I hope that some of it is still noticeable. This process also ensures that these passages take the longest time and are among the most difficult to translate.
Perhaps most interesting to this point, we have seen no indication of Dionysus' true power. It has only been threatened and described in vague terms (paralleling Pentheus' graphic depictions of what he intends to subject the intruder to). His revenge upon Pentheus remains entirely in the audience's imagination, and the consistent, yet unclear, foreshadowing creates an atmosphere of suspense and perhaps dread as to the coming events of the play. All that is certain is that it will not end propitiously.
370-518
(CHORUS enters)
CHORUS: Holiness, queen of the gods,
Holiness, you who bear your
golden wings across the earth,
do you perceive the deeds of Pentheus?
Don’t you see the unholy hubris
towards the Bromios, the son
of Semele, he who is the god
blessed most of all in terms of
beautiful crowns and merriment?
He controls these things, brings Bacchantry in dances,
laughs along with the flute,
puts an end to cares,
whenever the joy of the grape
comes into the feasts of the gods,
and the drinking-cup
tosses sleep to ivy-wearing men
in their festivities.
There’s an unlucky fate
for unbridled mouths
and lawless foolishness.
A life of rest
and wisdom
remains tranquil
and holds houses together.
All the same, the children of the heavens,
who dwell in the ether far away
look over the affairs of mortals.
Cleverness is not wisdom,
it’s not mortal to be wise.
Life is short; if someone pursues
great things in such a span,
he doesn’t experience what’s at hand.
This, in my opinion,
is the fate of mindless
and ill-advised men.
I wish that I would come to Cyprus
the island of Aphrodite
where the gods of love
distribute their love-charms to mortals,
and to the hundred-mouthed rainless streams
of the barbarian river
that nourishes Paphos.
Lead me there, O Bromios, Bromios,
to Pieria , where the beautiful
seats of the Muses lie,
the holy slope of Olympus ,
Euoe, O Bacchic spirit of worship.
There the Graces are,
there is Desire. There it is right
for Bacchae to celebrate.
The god, child of Zeus,
rejoices in festivals
and loves the goddess Peace,
giver of bliss, who raises young men.
He gives the same to the blessed man
and the unfortunate man, to have
the painless delight of wine.
He hates the man who cares naught for these,
to live a happy life through day
and blessed night,
to keep wise his mind and his heart,
and away from extravagant men.
I would wish to accept this:
whatever the majority of men
and the lower class think and deem right.
(exit CHORUS)
(Enter the ATTENDANT, DIONYSUS, and PENTHEUS)
ATTENDANT: Pentheus, we’re here, having caught the target
you sent us after, our efforts weren’t in vain.
The beast was tame for us, he didn’t withdraw
in flight, but he willingly gave his hands to us,
didn’t pale in fear, didn’t change his wine-dark complexion;
he laughed and ordered me to chain him and take him away,
and stayed put, making my job easily done.
I was ashamed and said to him “O Stranger, I’m not
seizing you willingly, but Pentheus gave me orders to do this.”
Besides, the Bacchae which you confined, carried off
and bound in chains under the jailhouse roof,
they’ve vanished, escaped towards the meadows,
where they leap and invoke the god Bromios.
The chains spontaneously detached from their feet,
and the bars and doors opened, from no mortal hand.
This man has come to Thebes
but it’s your job to take care of these things.
PENTHEUS: Release him. Since he’s already in the net,
he’s not swift enough to escape from me.
Still, your form is not unsightly, stranger,
at least, to a woman’s taste – and that’s why you’re in Thebes
You’ve got long hair; you’re no wrestler,
it’s pouring over your cheeks, full of desire.
Your skin is white, from deliberate contrivance,
from no strokes of the sun, but instead from shade,
hunting for Aphrodite’s charms through your beauty.
First off, tell me from what people you’ve come.
DIONYSUS: This is no boast – it’s easy to say.
You’ve heard, you know where Tmolus is.
P: I know – it bends around the city of Sardis
D: I’m from there – Lydia
P: Why are you bringing these mysteries to Greece
D: Dionysus, the son of Zeus, guided me.
P: Is there a “Zeus” there who creates new gods?
D: No, but the one that joined Semele in marriage here.
P: Did he compel you at night, or before your eyes?
D: I saw him as he saw me, and he showed me the rituals.
P: What form did these rites hold?
D: It is unspeakable for uninitiated mortals to know.
P: Does it offer an advantage for those who worship?
D: It’s not right for you to hear, but it is worthy to know.
P: You’ve dissembled so well that I want to know.
D: The god’s rituals hate the man who practices impiety.
P: You say that you saw the god clearly – what was he like?
D: However he wanted – I didn’t control it.
P: You diverted that well by saying nothing.
D: If you speak wise things to an idiot, you’ll seem foolish yourself.
P: As you led the god, did you come here first?
D: All the barbarian peoples celebrate choral dances.
P: Their minds are entirely inferior to Greeks.
D: Much wiser in this case, although their laws are different.
P: Do you celebrate the mysteries by day or by night?
D: Always at night. Darkness has a certain dignity.
P: This is treacherous and rotten towards the women.
D: Someone might also discover something shameful by day.
P: You deserve to be punished for your evil contrivances!
D: You as well, for foolishness and impiety towards the god.
P: This Bacchant is spirited, and not inexperienced in speaking!
D: Say what punishment should be endured. What terrible thing will you do to me?
P: First I’ll cut off your luxurious locks.
D: The hair is sacred. I grow it for the god.
P: Next, hand over the thyrsus in your hands.
D: Take it yourself! I carry it for Dionysus.
P: And we’ll guard you, yourself, in prison.
D: The divinity himself will free me, whenever I wish it.
P: You can call him only when standing among the Bacchae.
D: Since he is present nearby, he sees the things I suffer.
P: So where is he? He’s not visible to my eyes.
D: Right next to me. Since you are impious, you don’t see him.
P: Seize him! He’s slandering me and all of Thebes
D: Word from the wise to the unwise – don’t chain me.
P: I say bind him – I have more authority than you.
D: You don’t know why you live, what you’re doing, or who you are.
P: I am Pentheus, son of Agave; my father is Echion.
D: Your name is fitting for being unfortunate.
PENTHEUS: Get going. Shut him in near the horse stables,
so he may look upon total darkness.
Dance there. As for the women you’ve been leading around
as your colleagues in wickedness, I’ll either sell them into slavery
or, once I’ve stopped them from the beat and crash of the drum,
I’ll enslave them for working at the looms.
DIONYSUS: I will go, for what is not to be I will not have to suffer.
But, fool, Dionysus, whom you day does not exist,
will come and exact a price for your outrages.
By unjustly imprisoning us, you also put him in chains.
(Exeunt)
Notes
Paphos is a city on the island of Cyprus
Piereia is a hilly region to the north of Mt. Olympus, a long distance north of Thebes.
The Graces are minor goddesses of festivities, charm, and nice things in general.
Dionysus' "wine-dark complexion" is most likely a reference to the epic poet Homer, in whose poems the sea is often described as "wine-dark", although perhaps for a very different reason.
Sardis is a city in Lydia in western Asia Minor.
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