The Frogs (Aristophanes)

The Frogs representation

   THE FROGS is a satire by the Greek dramatist Aristophanes. The play was awarded first prize when presented at the Lenaean festival of 405 B.C. and still retains popularity, although generally considered one of his less skillful plays. Written shortly after the death of Euripides, the drama portrays the patron god of tragedy, Dionysus, as determined to go down into Hades and bring the tragic playwright back to earth. While the chorus of frogs, from which the comedy takes its name, sings lyrics of the rain and marshes, the god is ferried across the river by Charon to the door of Pluto. A contest ensues between Euripides and Aeschylus to discover which is the better playwright, and the god decides in favor of the latter. This part of the play seems inconsistent with what has gone before, and has led to the suggestion that the original Frogs was hastily revised at the death of Euripides. At any rate, Dionysus abandons his earlier plan, and it is Aeschylus he brings back to earth.