Interpolations in the Bacchae

Author(s): Valdis Lejnieks

Source: The American Journal of Philology, Vol. 88, No. 3 (Jul., 1967), pp. 332-339
Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/293211 .
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 INTERPOLATIONS IN THE BACCHAE.

The corrupt state of the end of Euripides' Bacchae has con-

tributed to the disagreement concerning Euripides' attitude
towards Dionysiac religion. The presence of two large lacunae
makes it difficult to evaluate accurately the intended dramatic
effect of the exodos. When the play ended, did the punishment
of Pentheus and Agave, although harsh, still seem justified,
or did the audience suddenly turn against Dionysus, repelled
by his brutality and petty insistence on his divinity? The diffi-
culty has been alleviated to some extent by a partial restoration
of the lacunae with the help of lines from the twelfth century
cento Christus Patiens. But while scholarly attention has been
concentrated on the lacunae, it has not been noticed that the
end of the play also contains interpolations which further com-
plicate the problem of interpretation. Because of the location
of the interpolations it is necessary first to make some observa-
tions about the lacunae.
In the first place, Robert's views on the lacunae, although
they have not been followed by the editors, are almost certainly
correct.1 Instead of a single large lacuna following 1329, there
are two large lacunae, one following 1300 and containing the
compositio membrorum speech of Agave, the other following
1329 and containing mainly the speech of Dionysus. This
follows from the consideration that for dramatic reasons the
compositio membrorumspeech of Agave must precede the speech
of Cadmus 1302-26. According to Apsines, Agave in her speech
effectively aroused grief for Pentheus by handling and lamenting
each piece of his body separately and pity for herself by self-
accusations.2 We may reasonably conjecture that in terms of
emotional intensity this speech was the high point of the play.
Such a speech fits only following line 1300. The preceding
rapid dialogue between Agave and Cadmus (1263-1300) has led
to Agave's return to sanity and the realization that Pentheus
1Carl Robert, "Die Schlussscene der Euripideischen Bakchen,"
Hermes, XXXIV (1899), pp. 645-9.
2 Rhetores
Graeci, ed. Walz, IX, pp. 587, 590. Quoted by Murray and
Dodds.
332

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 INTERPOLATIONSIN THE "BACCHAE." 333

is dead and that she has killed him. Agave now commands
the undivided attention of the audience. Lines 1298-1300 ask
questions about Pentheus and lead up to a confrontation be-
tween Agave and Pentheus' body. When the confrontation takes
place some appropriate reaction is expected from her. It is
highly disturbing to delay at this point the compositio mem-
brorum speech for another 28 lines while Cadmus digresses about
his own troubles and diverts the audience's attention from Agave.
Cadmus' speech appears rather to be a transitional passage
designed to relieve the emotional tension of the preceding speech
and prepare the audience for the universal announcement of
Dionysus' divinity. It does so by redirecting the feeling of pity
to Cadmus himself (1305-22) and generalizing the guilt and
suffering to the whole family (1302-4, 1323-4). If the com-
positio membrorum speech were to follow Cadmus' speech, it
would be necessary to direct the attention of the audience to
Agave and Pentheus and build up the emotional tension all
over again.
The first lacuna has no further bearing on the problem of
the interpolations. The second lacuna begins following line 1329.
The last line preceding the lacuna is spoken by Agave and
seems to lead up to a brief lament of the sudden change in her
fortunes which may have taken up one or two additional lines.
These were probably followed by a short answer by Cadmus
as 7rarep
c in 1329 implies. Cadmus' answer was soon followed
by the epiphany and speech of Dionysus. The beginning of
Dionysus' speech appears to be described by the last sentence
of the first hypothesis: At'vvro- 8e ebrcavelwIpv 7ract 7rap7iyyetLXv,
EKaUTa)78e a crvu1cr ETat SLteaa'craEv EpyotS, iva AXOyoLsV7Mo TLrO1S
T(SV ( TOS - avvOpwoTo KacTapovr-6O . "Dionysus appeared and
exhorted everyone (to accept his divinity) and made it clear
by deeds (the fate of Pentheus) to each one (present) what
will happen to him (if he blasphemes Dionysus) so that no
(uninitiated) outsider should despise him in words as human."
Dionysus probably began with some form of the announcement
"I am Dionysus, the son of Zeus," perhaps added a list of his
benefits to mankind, and then proceeded to discuss the crime
and punishment of Pentheus. The following lines may have
occurred in this part of the speech:
8 The following reconstruction of the lacuna apart from some changes

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334 VALDIS LEJNIEKS.

C. P., 1664 CE eoapd r'

T AXOe Kat (AoyovUseiracLyfLTwrv)
C. P., 1663 rotyap TrOvqKEV V (pV p Ktr83
vro.
C. P., 1667 KaU TrarVa /tEV IrrTrOVOEV OVTro (OVK aKWV)
1664: ko'ywv f/ptcraxara, Wecklein, 1667: Ev&SIKwKirchhoff.

The discussion of Pentheus may have ended with the lines

preserved in the papyrus fragment Antinoopolis Papyri, 24, fr.
(b) verso and supplemented by Dodds:
6 o TaiT' 07rw]7Tr-s K8Lax[OjrTW) 8pOTwV'
I
7 Atovvl ov] o Zeus TTrrVo [(TreTIpas Eo'v.

These lines may have been followed by an announcement that

punishment awaits all blasphemers. A section discussing the
crimes of Agave and her sisters and announcing their exile
probably followed next. The following lines may have occurred
here:
C. P., 1756 8eE yap ore rlv fovJaav eKA7relv7ro'dtv
'
C.P., 1674 ALrelv roXtvXT7rvS, voalov taTor/aro
C. P., 1675 lt'Krv(rivovrag) Tp8' Ov CK7Ertva (O0V6),
C. P., 1676 .Kaa K^rKETr (laELV) 7rarpL'S' ov yap evacee/'
C. P., 1677 /eJvetvf ovevrTa5 (& raToftO VEKpOVlUeVWv).
1675: Kirchhoff.
rtvocraa, Kirchhoff, 1676: EmSE8v,

This section would then be followed by the accusation of the

Thebans and the announcement of their expulsion and slavery.
The following lines may have occurred here:
C.P., 1360 OVK erpe7reI rvoXXoot
E?EVro ot XAoyovs,
C. P., 1361 eevU8s TrEKEVPfaioVTreS EK TLVO0 pporTWv.
C. P., 1668 a 8' av 7raOelv el Xaav ov KpVIpoW KaKa.
C. P., 1669 AXTrd7ro'Xua, fpapi/3pots SKOV, (aKWv)
C. P., 1678 7roA
XXate7roa
7rdTOEL elCKOVaL, tvyov
C.P., 1679 oov'etov (caveAKovTes) o 8vasacrtloVes:
C.P., 1672 alXLaEladXoTovs' 7roAXX avarXadvras KaKa

The last part of the speech consisted of prophecies addressed

to Cadmus. The following line probably served as an intro-
duction:

in order is basically that of Murray and Dodds. Any argument in-

volving this passage ultimately depends on the correctness of Murray's
ascription of these lines to the Bacchae.

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 INTERPOLATIONS IN THE " BACCHAE." 335

C. P., 1689 oTros 8' a EXetL7Trr7pJLuaT

K7TrX7)rlaw
fpac
An announcement of exile must have followed (cf. 1354-5),
These lines were soon followed by 1330 in the text. The
prophecy to Cadmus then goes on to describe how Cadmus and
Harmonia will be transformed into snakes, lead a barbarian army
against Greece, suffer defeat, and finally be transported by Ares
to the land of the blessed.
Two events in the prophecies, the expulsion and enslavement
of the Thebans and the return of Cadmus as the leader of a
barbarian army, are difficult to explain. The expulsion of the
Thebans is usually connected with the statement in Herodotus,
V, 61, 2: E7rLTovroV
oV TOVAao8oalavros TOV'ErcOKXEOq
'JLOvvapXEov7TO
E$av(o'TeaTaL KaSpedoL V7r' 'ApYELVwKaL TpE7rovTaL is ToVS 'EyXEEas;.
The same event is mentioned by Pausanias (IX, 8, 6): 7lvtKa
Vro 'ApyetLvMaXa Trpo rXlaavvTL KpaT8frav TOTE Aa 4oLavrtL
s vTretaoLavot 7roAXXol'rovTWvovv p.olpa T77v cEvis Trov
,rJ 'ErOKXCovK
'IXXvpLov\s7ropeaaVaTrOKXVe, Tpa7roLevoL SE es ?ecraXovs KaTOAaXL-
fpavovmv'OjoAXrv. There are, however, two serious discrepancies
between the account of Herodotus and Pausanias and the
prophecy. In the first place, Argives cannot be properly called
barbarians. Secondly, Herodotus and Pausanias speak of expul-
sion and emigration, but definitely not of slavery. There is,
however, a historical event which corresponds much more closely
to the prophecy. This is the capture of Thebes and enslave-
ment of the Thebans by Alexander in 335. The Macedonians
can be properly called barbarians (e.g. Herodotus, V, 22, 2;
Thucydides, IV, 124, 1) and on this occasion the Thebans were
indeed enslaved (Arrian, Anab., I, 9, 9; Diodorus, XVII, 13, 3).
The prophecy is also likely to have contained a reference to the
spectacular destruction of Thebes, but if so, these lines were not
used by the compiler of Christus Patiens.
The prophecy that Cadmus will lead an army of barbarians
against Greece (1333-8, 1355-60) is equally puzzling. The
prophecy suggests the invasions of Xerxes. The oracle (1333,
1355) can be connected with the oracle which Herodotus reports
as known to Mardonius (IX, 42, 3): WarnXoytov is Xpeov earL
IICpEasaa7rKOJLcevovses r Ev'EAAaSa Slap7raoacT tipvTO Iv AEXcoiFL,
/Era 8 \v 8tLap7rayrvaroXeAOatatTraVras. Hlerodotus, however, goes
on to explain (IX, 43, 1): TOVTOV8' EyoyE TOV XP'/a/dv, TOV
Maps&vtosetre es IIHepoaseXEtv,es 'IXXvptov' Kat TOV'EyxcAEWv

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336 VALDIS LEJNIEKS.

OVKis Hlepasa. The oracle therefore

AcXX'
TapaTov olSa 7reTroLl7evovV,
need not be referred to the Persians. The sacking of the temple
(1336-7), although reminiscent of the events of 480, does not
fit them accurately since according to Herodotus, VIII, 37-8
the Persians did not succeed in sacking the temple. Similarly
the attempted sack of the temple was not a significant turning
point (1336-8) in the Persian War. There is, however, again
a historical event which corresponds much more closely to the
prophecy. This is the invasion of Greece by the Galatians under
Brennus in 279. The oracle (1333), if we take it to be the
same as that of Herodotus, is far more applicable to the
Galatians than to the Persians. The Galatians were a mixed
(1356) army which included conquered Illyrian tribes to whom
the oracle was properly applicable (C. A. H., VII, p. 101). The
mention of the ox cart (1333) and the presence of Cadmus'
wife (1334) can be taken as referring to the Galatian habit of
traveling with a wagon train which carried their families and
possessions. A wagon train accompanied the expedition of
Brennus (C.A.H., VII, pp. 101, 103). As for the sacking of
the temple (1336-7), according to sources uninfluenced by
Delphic propaganda the Galatians either sacked or at least
started to sack the temple.4 For the Galatian invasion, more-
over, the sack of the temple was the turning point (1336-8).
Immediately thereafter the Galatians began to retreat and the
retreat turned into a rout with heavy losses (Pausanias, X, 23).
The only part of the prophecy which does not fit the events of
279 is the sacking of many cities (1335-6). The Galatians were
notoriously unsuccessful when it came to capturing walled towns.
These lines may have arisen simply from a desire to emphasize
the serious nature of the invasion.
The occurrence of two such historical references within a few
lines of each other clearly suggests the work of an interpolator.
The interpolation was probably made some time between 279
and 262 at Athens. The two historical events would be well
known to most Athenians at this time, the invasion of 279
because it was recent history, the destruction of Thebes because
it may well have figured in the anti-Macedonian propaganda
4 Salomon Reinach,
"L'attaque de Delphes par les Gaulois," Comptes
Rendus de l'Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, 1904, pp. 158-64.

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 INTERPOLATIONS IN THE "C
BACCHAE." 337

before and during the Chremonidean War. The enslavement of

the Thebans could be quoted as excellent proof that the Mace-
donians were yet another hostile nation of barbarians bent on
enslaving the Greeks. That such a sentiment was current at
this time is demonstrated by the decree of Chremonides (S. l. G.3,
434/5). The decree compares the Macedonians with the Per-
sians in their desire to enslave the Greek cities (KaTaSovXovacOa
Tas TroAEtL,line 11) and destroy the Greek way of life (lines
13-16). Such sentiments are less likely to have been voiced after
the surrender of Athens in 262. There are two possible reasons
which may have led the interpolator to apply Herodotus' oracle
to the Galatians. One is the general practice of comparing the
Persian and the Galatian invasions (C. A. H., VII, p. 102). This
apparently began immediately after the Galatian invasion. An
inscription of 278 mentions the Galatian shields which were
hung up on one side of the temple at Delphi to balance the
Persian shields from Marathon on the other side.5 A second
reason may have been the presence of Illyrians in the Galatian
army to whom, as the interpolator knew, the oracle was properly
applicable. The connection between Cadmus and Illyria is also
first attested in the third century. Apollonius Rhodius mentions
a mound (rTV/Los) of Cadmus and Harmonia, Phylarchus a
memorial (1vr7LueZov) of Cadmus and Harmonia, and Callimachus
a stone (Xaas) of Harmonia, all of them situated in Illyria.6
The idea of Cadmus leading the invasion of the Galatians may
again have been suggested to the interpolator by the presence
in the Galatian army of Illyrians with whom Cadmus was now
connected. The interpolator's idea of Cadmus' travels in the
ox wagon as a leader of a barbarian army apparently failed to
influence later tradition. The only possible influence is found
in the Etymologicum Magnum under BovOo'r: ClpyraL orKa8/Tos
7rTL
pOwVCEvyovs 'K rjfPtv TaXe's cs 'IXXvpLKovs7rapayevopevos EKToT7

6 S.I. G.8, 398, lines 9-10.

Pausanias, X, 19, 4.
Apollonius Rhodius, IV, 516-17; Phylarchus quoted by Athenaeus,
XI, 462 b; Callimachus quoted by Strabo, I, C, 46. It has been con-
jectured (0. Crusius, "Kadmos," no. 50 in Roscher's Lexikon, II
[1890], col. 850) that the source of this information is an early epic
dealing with the Argonauts. It is more likely, however, that the infor-
mation represents a local cult tradition (see Dodds' note on
1330) which
was first picked up in literary sources in the third
century.

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338 VALDIS LEJNIEKS.

rTOXLv'KgC aTr TroV PowV Ka TroV o053f4vyiTv, BovOodlvaJv7v Zvo'wtaav.

The unknown punster may have been familiar with the ending
of the Bacchae.
The interpolator himself apparently was an educated man
who knew his Herodotus and the latest views on Cadmus and
Illyria. He could also write good Euripidean trimeters. In
making the interpolations he seems to have had two things in
mind: one, to demonstrate the prophetic powers of his poet by
introducing in the text references to two prominent historical
events known to the audience; two, to increase the pathos of the
ending by multiplying the number of exiles and making Cadmus
more pathetic. The changes introduced by the interpolator are
at least the following:
1. Addition of the passage prophesying the exile and enslave-
ment of the Thebans. This is now represented by C.P., 1360,
1361, 1668, 1669, 1678, 1679, 1672. The original impetus for
the interpolation may have come from a reference in the imme-
diately precedinglines to the blasphemies of Agave and her sisters
(cf. 26-7). The interpolator then attributed the same behavior
to the Thebans and imposed an identical punishment.
2. Addition of C. P., 1689, which introduces the prophecies
concerning Cadmus, and lines 1333-9, which prophesy Cadmus'
return as the leader of a barbarian army. Lines 1333-9 in addi-
tion to the problems of the prophecy itself also introduce a
logical inconsistency. The immediately preceding lines (1330-2)
have announced Cadmus' metamorphosis into a snake. Next
he is seen driving an ox cart. We are led to ask with Dodds,
"Was Cadmus already a snake when he drove the ox-wagon?"
The metamorphosis into a snake was probably the only reference
to the fate of Cadmus in the original speech. Euripides seems
to have liked the idea and had already used it in an earlier
play (probably the lost Cadmus) as fr. 930 N2 implies:
! S
OyOtl, SpaKcWYv LOL yIyverat TO y) I7K1TU

T7KVOV, 7reptlrXaKvlOt Tj) XOLTrowrarpl.

According to Philostratus, Imagines, I, 18 the metamorphosis

took place in Thebes. That Euripides also followed this tradi-
tion and did not make Cadmus first go into exile is strongly
implied by the end of the play. Agave separated from Cadmus
goes into exile, but Cadmus himself stays behind. Cadmus'

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 INTERPOLATIONS IN THE "BACCHAB." 339

line, vvv 8' c So,udv arqLos cKfejfAXcrojpua

(1313), does not in its
context imply exile, but means simply that Cadmus will lose
his respected position in the city which depended on the power
of his grandson and will be thrown out of the palace by the
new ruler.
3. Change of speaker in lines 1344, 1346, 1348. Since with
the interpolated prophecy Cadmus now appears to be punished,
he has reason to beg for mercy and complain of Dionysus'
harshness. The change was probably motivated by a desire to
heighten the pathos by making an obviously innocent man suffer.
Elmsley's change of speaker in these lines from Cadmus back
to Agave is almost certainly correct and has been followed by
most editors.
4. Addition of lines 1354-62. These lines are a paraphrase of
the prophecy in the speech of Dionysus and were probably
added to produce another pathetic scene in which Cadmus could
theatrically lament his misfortunes. In 1353 we should restore

These changes in so far as they affect the fate of Cadmus

have far-reaching consequencesfor the interpretation of the play.
Having aged Cadmus go into exile and then return as the leader
of a barbarian army seems like a gratuitous act of brutality
on the part of Dionysus. Cadmus, after all, along with Tiresias
was the first of Thebans to accept the divinity of Dionysus
(178ff.). This cruelty to Cadmus provides a strong argument
for the view which sees Dionysus as a Nietzschean nature god
who, when offended, deals out punishments with indiscriminate
brutality and is above such merely human trifles as guilt or
innocence. Those who will wish to use this argument in the
future, however, would do well to consider that the fate of
Cadmus as it appears at the end of the play is in all probability
not the creation of Euripides, but that of a sincere admirer of
his who wanted to improve upon the most tragic of all poets
by making the most tragic of plays still more tragic.
VALDIS LEJNIEKS.
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA.

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