The Frogs by Aristophanes | In-Depth Summary & Analysis

Aristophanes's play The Frogs explained with act summaries in just a few minutes!

Course Hero Literature Instructor Russell Jaffe provides an in-depth analysis of the plot, characters, symbols, and themes of Aristophanes's play The Frogs.

Download the free study guide and infographic for The Frogs here: https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Frogs/infographic/

In Aristophanes's satirical play The Frogs, the god Dionysus journeys to Hades dressed as the hero Hercules. He wishes to converse with playwright Euripides, who has recently died.

Accompanied by his slave Xanthias, with whom he switches identities on several occasions, he crosses the water into the underworld.

The two have comic and serious adventures before reaching Pluto’s court, including an encounter with a chorus of frogs, who comically step in for the traditional chorus of Greek theater.

There, Dionysus then serves as a judge of the poetic skills of Euripides and Aeschylus, another playwright.

Aeschylus, who represents a more conservative theatrical style, eventually prevails. He does so by suggesting that Aristophanes is defending the tradition of Old Comedy against the innovations of the likes of Euripides.

Greek playwright Aristophanes’s play The Frogs was first performed in 405 BCE. Best-remembered of the Old Comedy playwrights of ancient Greece, most of his work was satirical and had political themes. His characters included gods, demigods, contemporary and recently deceased politicians, and playwrights. He used birds, clouds, and frogs for his imaginative choruses.

The satirical play The Frogs contain many important themes, including a return to the old ways, as Aeschylus, who argues that Athenian survival is dependent on the tradition of his works wins the battle; identity, as it is best to not pretend to be something you are not; and the importance of poetry and drama, as the role of poetry and drama was particularly significant in ancient Greece, when other forms of mass communication were in their infancy. Important symbol includes the lion skin and the scale.

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