Introduction: Pentheus, the Victim of Bacchanalia In his famous tragedy “The Bakkhai,” Euripides brings back the famous story of Pentheus and Dionysos. Although the mythology of the Ancient Greece is full of murder, the story of Pentheus’s death is one of the most shocking of all, which already says a lot, given the shocking brutality of Ancient Greek myths. Thesis statement Although it is traditionally considered that the key reason behind Pentheus’s death was his denial of Dionysos as a god, it can also be argued that Pentheus’s non-acceptance of Dionysos was only the factor, while the key reason behind his death was taking the tradition of bacchanalias away from the citizen, as well as his acceptance of a feminine role and the resulting mistakes in political strategy, as well as the fact that Pentheus obviously underestimated the power of the crowd. “The Bakkhai”: Summary and Mythological Background Though the tragic event known as the death of Pentheus, which was later on described by Euripides in his “the Bakkhai” is notoriously famous all over the world, recalling the key events will help analyzing the reasons behind Pentheus’s death more efficiently. Known as the monarch of the Thebes, Pentheus was against bacchanalias as very sinful and indecent events. After Pentheus captures Dionysos, the latter feels outraged and makes Agave lose her mind and join him. Trying to stop the mother, Pentheus attends the bacchanalia, but his insane mother murders him, thinking he was a lion. As soon as the bacchanalia is over, however, she realizes what she has done and cries. Dionysos turns Agave’s father into a dragon and her mother into a snake, exiling Agave and her sisters forever. The Reasons for Pentheus’s Downfall: Where It All Started from Though the reasons for Pentheus’s defeat are obvious, there might be some arguments concerning his own fault in what had happened. Even though Pentheus should have given Dionysos more credit, there are other factors that predetermined Pentheur’s downfall. Pentheus’s refusal to accept Dionysos The given reason for Pentheus downfall seems the most obvious. Indeed, according to the plot of the tragedy, the monarch is murdered by his own mother in the midst of bacchanalia that has got completely out of control: AGAVE: Men are hunting us! We’ll fight them with our wands! (Euripides line 1000). To start with, unless Panthos had prohibited the tradition of bacchanalia and mocked Dionysos, the latter would have not feel the urge to take his revenge on Pentheus; his priestesses and followers would have never become so enraged: […] Here’s the truth: He’s a ‘god’ lightning burned up with his mother as a punishment for her great lie (Euripides lines 358–360). Therefore, the bacchanalia feats would have not become so uncontrollable; in her turn, Pentheus’s mother would have not decided to join the protesting Bacchantes and, therefore, would have never gone so insane that she would devour her own son. Playing a more feminine role: Pentheus’s retreat It could also be argued that the downfall of Pentheus can be explained by the change in his policy as a monarch. If comparing the Pentheus of the first part of the story and the Pentheus that the readers encounter in the final part of the poem, one will see that these two have nothing in common with each other. The Pentheus that the readers see at the start