Then on to the genius that is Euripides. And the class definitely appreciated the killer line, "talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish." Today we read the scene where Pentheus first meets Dionysus (except he's masquerading a a priest of Dionysus - confused yet?). And brilliant textual analysis from the class who noticed that, yes, Pentheus was being a litle bit over-interested in his captive priest (sorry, told you this play could be, erm, complicated). Nailaa made a stern Dionysus, whilst Anna's portrayal of Pentheus definitely highlighted the confused fascination that this young, naive king feels in the god's presence. The themes of confusion, tension and power struggles were also highlighted by Prof. Edith Hall in her video synopsis of the play.
We also encountered a crucial term in Greek theatre: pathos. Pathos (from which we get the English word 'pathetic') is when a writer appeals to the audience's emotions. Some class members then astutely linked this to the term 'pathetic fallacy', the reflection of human emotion in nature often seen in the works of Romantic poets such as Willam Wordsworth, and novelists such as Thomas Hardy.