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«Βάκχες» Ευριπίδη (Euripides' "Bacchae") — Original text in Classical Attic verse, with Prologue, Metrical Translation, Notes & Commentary in Modern Greek
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The god Dionysus —son of Zeus and of the mortal woman Semele— arrives in the city of Thebes from Asia, impersonating a mortal and accompanied by the "Bacchae", his female followers. The latter, clad in deer skins and holding in their hands the "thyrsus" (a wooden staff wrapped in ivy, the symbol and the carrier of the divine power of Dionysus), experience the ecstasy by participating in the sacred mysteries of the god Dionysus, while being at the same time in a state of divine madness —after having freed their mind from the worldly bonds and rules, united in one body and one soul; their body pulsating in the rhythm of the drums, and vibrating to the sweet warbling of the Phrygian flutes. The purpose of Dionysus is to initiate Thebes, his natal city, first among all of Greece, in his new liberating cult.
In his last work, the "Bacchae", Euripides introduces novelties in the epistemology of the Attic Tragedy as well as in the structure of its theatrical representation; at the same time, he tries to introduce these novelties in the way of perception and thinking of the spectators (perhaps, more in an effort to warn them, rather than to reform their mindset). The "Bacchae" can be considered more as a cultural cry of agony as well as a poetic protest against the looming end of the Attic Tragedy itself, the end of the Athenian democracy and the end of the classical Hellenism, and less as a purely didactic content which aims at the intellectual self-improvement of the spectators. Euripides brutally modernizes and reconstructs the mechanisms of the theatrical receptivity (and, in part, of the aesthetics) of the ancient Attic Tragedy; he "abolishes" it as a distinct kind of poetic and theatrical creation, and "buries" it (perhaps anticipating its possible rebirth in the future, in a manner similar to the double birth of Dionysus, the creator of the theater), shortly before he himself dies, in a manner similar to that of the protagonist of the drama.
This book includes the original (partially reconstructed) ancient text of the "Bacchae", translated side-by-side in modern greek, in verse. The translation is accompanied by commentary on a selected number of verses, and by an extensive Prologue (both in modern greek) —in which the "Bacchae" and its contents are analyzed, including a composite interpretive view of the tragedy.
• Google Books, by ISBN search: 9781456637354
without an ISBN (distributed by me):
• My Academia Profile, in PDF format.
The god Dionysus —son of Zeus and of the mortal woman Semele— arrives in the city of Thebes from Asia, impersonating a mortal and accompanied by the "Bacchae", his female followers. The latter, clad in deer skins and holding in their hands the "thyrsus" (a wooden staff wrapped in ivy, the symbol and the carrier of the divine power of Dionysus), experience the ecstasy by participating in the sacred mysteries of the god Dionysus, while being at the same time in a state of divine madness —after having freed their mind from the worldly bonds and rules, united in one body and one soul; their body pulsating in the rhythm of the drums, and vibrating to the sweet warbling of the Phrygian flutes. The purpose of Dionysus is to initiate Thebes, his natal city, first among all of Greece, in his new liberating cult.
In his last work, the "Bacchae", Euripides introduces novelties in the epistemology of the Attic Tragedy as well as in the structure of its theatrical representation; at the same time, he tries to introduce these novelties in the way of perception and thinking of the spectators (perhaps, more in an effort to warn them, rather than to reform their mindset). The "Bacchae" can be considered more as a cultural cry of agony as well as a poetic protest against the looming end of the Attic Tragedy itself, the end of the Athenian democracy and the end of the classical Hellenism, and less as a purely didactic content which aims at the intellectual self-improvement of the spectators. Euripides brutally modernizes and reconstructs the mechanisms of the theatrical receptivity (and, in part, of the aesthetics) of the ancient Attic Tragedy; he "abolishes" it as a distinct kind of poetic and theatrical creation, and "buries" it (perhaps anticipating its possible rebirth in the future, in a manner similar to the double birth of Dionysus, the creator of the theater), shortly before he himself dies, in a manner similar to that of the protagonist of the drama.
This book includes the original (partially reconstructed) ancient text of the "Bacchae", translated side-by-side in modern greek, in verse. The translation is accompanied by commentary on a selected number of verses, and by an extensive Prologue (both in modern greek) —in which the "Bacchae" and its contents are analyzed, including a composite interpretive view of the tragedy.
135 pages, ebook
Published March 19, 2021
About the author
Chris Tsirkas
11 booksChris A. Tsirkas is a software architect, self-taught classicist, and playwright known for breathing new life into ancient narratives through innovative theatrical adaptations. His work explores ancient Greek lyric poetry, drama, philosophy, psychology, religious studies, and linguistics, influenced by French opera of the 17th–18th centuries, Shakespeare, Victorian poetry, French symbolism, and Greek poets such as Mavilis, Palamas, Hatzopoulos, and Sikelianos.
His first publication, «Βελλεροφόντης» (“Bellerophon”), adapts N. J. Spyropoulos’ work through Modern Greek verse. He later published a metrical translation of Euripides’ «Βάκχες»(“Bacchae”), combining the original text with rich commentary, to make classical drama accessible to contemporary readers.
His tragic works include «Μέδουσα» (“Medusa”), an Attic tragedy in classical verse alongside a translation in modern Greek, and the reconstruction of Euripides’ fragmented Ἀντιόπη (“Antiope”), adapted in both English and Greek verse with commentary. His book "Tragedy - Logos, Rhythm and Psyche" («Τραγωδία - Λόγος, Ρυθμός και Ψυχή») examines the linguistic, rhythmic, and psychological dimensions of Attic Tragedy, focusing on metrics, language, and choral structure.
In "The Veils of the Seven Skies" (2025), Tsirkas merges Attic Tragedy with Chinese Opera aesthetics, following Dionysus’ journey to the Celestial Court through musicalized verse and detailed choreography. In "Morgana - A Tragedy in Five Acts", he reimagines the Arthurian legend through Greek tragic structure and Elizabethan verse, portraying Morgana as a priestess between ancient wisdom and Christianity.
In "King Starchidagoras - The Phallic Quest to the Underworld", he turns to Aristophanic Comedy, creating a bawdy satire where an antihero king seeks the First Phallus to save his city from Aphrodite’s curse, exploring human weakness, political absurdity, and sexual politics.
His tragedy "Pelieion Ágos" explores the origins of Medea’s darkness before Corinth, depicting the daughters of Pelias’ fatal illusion of renewal. Written in an Aeschylean style, it examines guilt, vengeance, and the birth of an enduring curse.
His tragedy "Ariadne" transforms the myth of abandonment into a meditation on endurance, memory, and existence after the collapse of certainty, examining the human struggle to create meaning without guaranteed redemption.
The author also experiments with symphonic metal and modern music genres, blending the intensity of Attic tragedy with contemporary sounds through AI-composed tracks.
• https://independent.academia.edu/Chri...
• https://zenodo.org/search?q=metadata....
• https://www.facebook.com/chris.a.tsirkas
• https://soundcloud.com/chris-t-331652374
His first publication, «Βελλεροφόντης» (“Bellerophon”), adapts N. J. Spyropoulos’ work through Modern Greek verse. He later published a metrical translation of Euripides’ «Βάκχες»(“Bacchae”), combining the original text with rich commentary, to make classical drama accessible to contemporary readers.
His tragic works include «Μέδουσα» (“Medusa”), an Attic tragedy in classical verse alongside a translation in modern Greek, and the reconstruction of Euripides’ fragmented Ἀντιόπη (“Antiope”), adapted in both English and Greek verse with commentary. His book "Tragedy - Logos, Rhythm and Psyche" («Τραγωδία - Λόγος, Ρυθμός και Ψυχή») examines the linguistic, rhythmic, and psychological dimensions of Attic Tragedy, focusing on metrics, language, and choral structure.
In "The Veils of the Seven Skies" (2025), Tsirkas merges Attic Tragedy with Chinese Opera aesthetics, following Dionysus’ journey to the Celestial Court through musicalized verse and detailed choreography. In "Morgana - A Tragedy in Five Acts", he reimagines the Arthurian legend through Greek tragic structure and Elizabethan verse, portraying Morgana as a priestess between ancient wisdom and Christianity.
In "King Starchidagoras - The Phallic Quest to the Underworld", he turns to Aristophanic Comedy, creating a bawdy satire where an antihero king seeks the First Phallus to save his city from Aphrodite’s curse, exploring human weakness, political absurdity, and sexual politics.
His tragedy "Pelieion Ágos" explores the origins of Medea’s darkness before Corinth, depicting the daughters of Pelias’ fatal illusion of renewal. Written in an Aeschylean style, it examines guilt, vengeance, and the birth of an enduring curse.
His tragedy "Ariadne" transforms the myth of abandonment into a meditation on endurance, memory, and existence after the collapse of certainty, examining the human struggle to create meaning without guaranteed redemption.
The author also experiments with symphonic metal and modern music genres, blending the intensity of Attic tragedy with contemporary sounds through AI-composed tracks.
• https://independent.academia.edu/Chri...
• https://zenodo.org/search?q=metadata....
• https://www.facebook.com/chris.a.tsirkas
• https://soundcloud.com/chris-t-331652374
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May 30, 2024
3.75/5
πολύ ενδιαφέρον με πολύ βοηθητικά και επεξηγηματικά σχόλια. ωστόσο τα σχόλια αυτά πολλές φορές καταντούσαν κουραστικά καθώς ήταν εκτεταμένα και ορισμένα δυσνόητα.
πολύ ενδιαφέρον με πολύ βοηθητικά και επεξηγηματικά σχόλια. ωστόσο τα σχόλια αυτά πολλές φορές καταντούσαν κουραστικά καθώς ήταν εκτεταμένα και ορισμένα δυσνόητα.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review