In his plays, Euripides tends to use compound adjectives that are full of meaning, but sometimes,... more In his plays, Euripides tends to use compound adjectives that are full of meaning, but sometimes, since the lexemes that compose them may have different senses, it is difficult to translate them including all their nuances. It is important to know and reflect those nuances in translation, as far as possible. This work deals with two of these compound adjectives that appear in Bacchae: ἡλιόβλητος and οἰνωπός. Scholars disagree on their translation and interpretation.
'Ilu. Revista de Ciencias de las Religiones 24, pp.59-74, 2019
The main theme of Euripides’ Bacchae is Dionysus’ divinity and its recognition by the Thebans. Th... more The main theme of Euripides’ Bacchae is Dionysus’ divinity and its recognition by the Thebans. The birth of Dionysus is a key point in the myth to determine that he is a god, consequently the playwright makes several of his characters mention it from different points of view. There are two versions clearly in conflict: on the one hand, Dionysus and his worshippers defend that he is a son of Zeus and, therefore, a god who must be venerated. On the other hand, Pentheus, assuming his aunts’ view, thinks that his aunt Semele, who is Dionysus’ mother, lied when she stated that she had conceived a son of Zeus, in order to conceal a love affair with a mere mortal. Therefore, in the king’s opinion Dionysus is not a god but a mere human being. In addition, there are two characters, Cadmus and Tiresias, whose attitudes with regard to this matter are not so clear and have led scholars to interpret them in opposite ways. In this paper I am analyzing the passages of Bacchae on Dionysus’ birth, with special emphasis on those where Euripides shows or refers to Cadmus’ and Tiresias’ opinions, since my aim is to try to clarify, as far as possible, which stand the playwright made those two characters adopt regarding to Dionysus’ divinity.
First of all I'm going to focus on a fragment by Aeschylus that contains a 'pseudo-katábasis': it... more First of all I'm going to focus on a fragment by Aeschylus that contains a 'pseudo-katábasis': it recreates the necromantic ritual performed by Odysseus in order to invoke the dead and penetrate into Hades, taking as reference the 11 th book of the Odyssey. Then I will deal with two katabáseis themselves, mentioned by Euripides, one of Orpheus and the other of Heracles, along with a 'project' of katábasis of the latter to take up Alcestis from Hades that, at the end, did not materialize 1. 2. Aeschylus, fr. 273a Psychagogoi: a necromantic ritual at the gates of Hades
The plot of Euripides’ satiric drama Cyclops takes as its base the mythical episode of Odysseus a... more The plot of Euripides’ satiric drama Cyclops takes as its base the mythical episode of Odysseus and the Cyclops. One of the main themes of the play is the confrontation between the civilized world of the hero and the monster’s wildness. This confrontation becomes very important by the hospitality and the symposium. We pay special attention to that latter point because, besides the fact that the Cyclops is ignorant of wine gives to Odysseus the possibility of escaping, Dionysus becomes an active character in the satiric drama by his identification with his most important attribute, the wine.
El fr. 912 Kannicht de Eurípides resulta oscuro en su interpretación religiosa. Se trata de una p... more El fr. 912 Kannicht de Eurípides resulta oscuro en su interpretación religiosa. Se trata de una plegaria donde en un momento determinado (el v. 9) se demanda la presencia de «almas de los muertos» para que ayuden a conocer la verdad de diferentes cuestiones existenciales. El v.9 es uno de los puntos más conflictivos del pasaje, sobre todo a la hora de determinar la identidad de esas almas. Mi propuesta es que se trate de unos seres intermedios que prestarían su ayuda a los fieles en determinado momento del ritual, y que podrían identificarse con démones benefactores, puesto que éstos también son un tipo de almas. Las Euménides también serían este tipo de démones, mientras que las Erinis serían démones vengadores que por el contrario podrían dificultar en el proceso iniciático. En el Papiro de Derveni se menciona a las Euménides como almas que han sido apaciguadas y que sirven de intermediarias entre hombres y dioses y viceversa. Los testimonios que hemos recogido de Platón, Plutarco y Porfirio hablan de los démones como una suerte de almas que median entre el mundo humano y el divino y que, cuando son beneficiosos, proporcionan revelaciones y guían al ser humano. En el fr. 912 de Eurípides se presenta un cuadro religioso coherente con las creencias órficas y complementario del Papiro de Derveni en relación a la presencia de los démones en el ritual órfico.
Este capítulo se centra en dos cuestiones: en primer lugar,
el tratamiento que recibe la figura d... more Este capítulo se centra en dos cuestiones: en primer lugar, el tratamiento que recibe la figura de Orfeo por parte de los autores trágicos; en concreto, observamos los atributos de esta figura y los episodios de lo que se podría llamar «biografía mítica» de Orfeo en los que estos autores insisten más. En segundo lugar estudiamos los testimonios más importantes relacionados con la religión órfica, a través de los cuales podremos conocer las huellas que ésta ha dejado en la tragedia y, en cierto modo, cuál pudo haber sido el conocimiento de esta corriente religiosa que tuvieron los grandes trágicos y la postura que tomaron ante ella.
In his plays, Euripides tends to use compound adjectives that are full of meaning, but sometimes,... more In his plays, Euripides tends to use compound adjectives that are full of meaning, but sometimes, since the lexemes that compose them may have different senses, it is difficult to translate them including all their nuances. It is important to know and reflect those nuances in translation, as far as possible. This work deals with two of these compound adjectives that appear in Bacchae: ἡλιόβλητος and οἰνωπός. Scholars disagree on their translation and interpretation.
'Ilu. Revista de Ciencias de las Religiones 24, pp.59-74, 2019
The main theme of Euripides’ Bacchae is Dionysus’ divinity and its recognition by the Thebans. Th... more The main theme of Euripides’ Bacchae is Dionysus’ divinity and its recognition by the Thebans. The birth of Dionysus is a key point in the myth to determine that he is a god, consequently the playwright makes several of his characters mention it from different points of view. There are two versions clearly in conflict: on the one hand, Dionysus and his worshippers defend that he is a son of Zeus and, therefore, a god who must be venerated. On the other hand, Pentheus, assuming his aunts’ view, thinks that his aunt Semele, who is Dionysus’ mother, lied when she stated that she had conceived a son of Zeus, in order to conceal a love affair with a mere mortal. Therefore, in the king’s opinion Dionysus is not a god but a mere human being. In addition, there are two characters, Cadmus and Tiresias, whose attitudes with regard to this matter are not so clear and have led scholars to interpret them in opposite ways. In this paper I am analyzing the passages of Bacchae on Dionysus’ birth, with special emphasis on those where Euripides shows or refers to Cadmus’ and Tiresias’ opinions, since my aim is to try to clarify, as far as possible, which stand the playwright made those two characters adopt regarding to Dionysus’ divinity.
First of all I'm going to focus on a fragment by Aeschylus that contains a 'pseudo-katábasis': it... more First of all I'm going to focus on a fragment by Aeschylus that contains a 'pseudo-katábasis': it recreates the necromantic ritual performed by Odysseus in order to invoke the dead and penetrate into Hades, taking as reference the 11 th book of the Odyssey. Then I will deal with two katabáseis themselves, mentioned by Euripides, one of Orpheus and the other of Heracles, along with a 'project' of katábasis of the latter to take up Alcestis from Hades that, at the end, did not materialize 1. 2. Aeschylus, fr. 273a Psychagogoi: a necromantic ritual at the gates of Hades
The plot of Euripides’ satiric drama Cyclops takes as its base the mythical episode of Odysseus a... more The plot of Euripides’ satiric drama Cyclops takes as its base the mythical episode of Odysseus and the Cyclops. One of the main themes of the play is the confrontation between the civilized world of the hero and the monster’s wildness. This confrontation becomes very important by the hospitality and the symposium. We pay special attention to that latter point because, besides the fact that the Cyclops is ignorant of wine gives to Odysseus the possibility of escaping, Dionysus becomes an active character in the satiric drama by his identification with his most important attribute, the wine.
El fr. 912 Kannicht de Eurípides resulta oscuro en su interpretación religiosa. Se trata de una p... more El fr. 912 Kannicht de Eurípides resulta oscuro en su interpretación religiosa. Se trata de una plegaria donde en un momento determinado (el v. 9) se demanda la presencia de «almas de los muertos» para que ayuden a conocer la verdad de diferentes cuestiones existenciales. El v.9 es uno de los puntos más conflictivos del pasaje, sobre todo a la hora de determinar la identidad de esas almas. Mi propuesta es que se trate de unos seres intermedios que prestarían su ayuda a los fieles en determinado momento del ritual, y que podrían identificarse con démones benefactores, puesto que éstos también son un tipo de almas. Las Euménides también serían este tipo de démones, mientras que las Erinis serían démones vengadores que por el contrario podrían dificultar en el proceso iniciático. En el Papiro de Derveni se menciona a las Euménides como almas que han sido apaciguadas y que sirven de intermediarias entre hombres y dioses y viceversa. Los testimonios que hemos recogido de Platón, Plutarco y Porfirio hablan de los démones como una suerte de almas que median entre el mundo humano y el divino y que, cuando son beneficiosos, proporcionan revelaciones y guían al ser humano. En el fr. 912 de Eurípides se presenta un cuadro religioso coherente con las creencias órficas y complementario del Papiro de Derveni en relación a la presencia de los démones en el ritual órfico.
Este capítulo se centra en dos cuestiones: en primer lugar,
el tratamiento que recibe la figura d... more Este capítulo se centra en dos cuestiones: en primer lugar, el tratamiento que recibe la figura de Orfeo por parte de los autores trágicos; en concreto, observamos los atributos de esta figura y los episodios de lo que se podría llamar «biografía mítica» de Orfeo en los que estos autores insisten más. En segundo lugar estudiamos los testimonios más importantes relacionados con la religión órfica, a través de los cuales podremos conocer las huellas que ésta ha dejado en la tragedia y, en cierto modo, cuál pudo haber sido el conocimiento de esta corriente religiosa que tuvieron los grandes trágicos y la postura que tomaron ante ella.
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have different senses, it is difficult to translate them including all their nuances. It is important to know and reflect those nuances in translation,
as far as possible. This work deals with two of these compound adjectives that appear in Bacchae: ἡλιόβλητος and οἰνωπός. Scholars disagree on
their translation and interpretation.
versions clearly in conflict: on the one hand, Dionysus and his worshippers defend that he is a son of Zeus and, therefore, a god who must be venerated. On the other hand, Pentheus, assuming his aunts’ view, thinks that his aunt Semele, who is Dionysus’ mother, lied when she stated that she had conceived a son of Zeus, in order to conceal a love affair with a mere mortal. Therefore, in the king’s opinion Dionysus is not a god but a mere human being. In addition, there are two characters, Cadmus and
Tiresias, whose attitudes with regard to this matter are not so clear and have led scholars to interpret them in opposite ways. In this paper I am analyzing the passages of Bacchae on Dionysus’ birth, with special emphasis on those where Euripides shows or refers to Cadmus’ and Tiresias’ opinions, since my aim is to try to clarify, as far as possible, which stand the playwright made those two characters adopt regarding to Dionysus’ divinity.
point because, besides the fact that the Cyclops is ignorant of wine gives to Odysseus the possibility of escaping, Dionysus becomes an active character in the satiric drama by his identification with his most important attribute, the wine.
el tratamiento que recibe la figura de Orfeo por parte de los autores trágicos; en concreto, observamos los atributos de esta figura y los episodios de lo que se podría llamar «biografía mítica» de Orfeo en los que estos autores insisten más. En segundo lugar estudiamos los testimonios más importantes relacionados con la religión órfica, a través de los cuales podremos conocer las huellas que ésta ha dejado en la tragedia y, en cierto modo, cuál pudo haber sido el conocimiento de esta corriente religiosa que tuvieron los grandes trágicos y la postura que tomaron ante ella.
have different senses, it is difficult to translate them including all their nuances. It is important to know and reflect those nuances in translation,
as far as possible. This work deals with two of these compound adjectives that appear in Bacchae: ἡλιόβλητος and οἰνωπός. Scholars disagree on
their translation and interpretation.
versions clearly in conflict: on the one hand, Dionysus and his worshippers defend that he is a son of Zeus and, therefore, a god who must be venerated. On the other hand, Pentheus, assuming his aunts’ view, thinks that his aunt Semele, who is Dionysus’ mother, lied when she stated that she had conceived a son of Zeus, in order to conceal a love affair with a mere mortal. Therefore, in the king’s opinion Dionysus is not a god but a mere human being. In addition, there are two characters, Cadmus and
Tiresias, whose attitudes with regard to this matter are not so clear and have led scholars to interpret them in opposite ways. In this paper I am analyzing the passages of Bacchae on Dionysus’ birth, with special emphasis on those where Euripides shows or refers to Cadmus’ and Tiresias’ opinions, since my aim is to try to clarify, as far as possible, which stand the playwright made those two characters adopt regarding to Dionysus’ divinity.
point because, besides the fact that the Cyclops is ignorant of wine gives to Odysseus the possibility of escaping, Dionysus becomes an active character in the satiric drama by his identification with his most important attribute, the wine.
el tratamiento que recibe la figura de Orfeo por parte de los autores trágicos; en concreto, observamos los atributos de esta figura y los episodios de lo que se podría llamar «biografía mítica» de Orfeo en los que estos autores insisten más. En segundo lugar estudiamos los testimonios más importantes relacionados con la religión órfica, a través de los cuales podremos conocer las huellas que ésta ha dejado en la tragedia y, en cierto modo, cuál pudo haber sido el conocimiento de esta corriente religiosa que tuvieron los grandes trágicos y la postura que tomaron ante ella.