Dionysus in Exile: On the Repression of the Body and Emotion Book

Some fascinating concepts but ultimately quite different to what I expected. The vast majority of this book (or essay) was concerned with unpacking Euripedes' tragedy 'The Bacchae'. I thought this gave it an inherent one-sidedness, limiting the Dionysian archetype to one orientation in history. This is unfortunate as there are those who view him as a foreign import into Greek culture and this isn't explored in the essay. Further, the whole book depends on an acceptance of his origin myth as being the son of Zeus (not entirely uncontroversial). I expected more of an abstract and thematic exploration of the Dionysian archetype but this takes you chronologically through The Bacchae, so feels more like literary criticism.

Some positives I did take away though

- The description of the Titans and the application of their archetypes to the modern world was chilling and I felt it in my bones. Juxtaposing their overarching giant-like influence over the very human (and messy, emotional) Dionysus was interesting, and I found my physical, mental and emotional reaction to this intriguing and food for self-reflection
-The writer does a great job of unpacking and deconstructing the stereotype of Dionysus as the jolly god of food and wine- amplifying his affiliations and presence in the repressed aspects of reality such as madness, tragedy, violence and gang warfare too
- I loved the talk of the emotional body and Dionysus's presence in the physical body. I appreciated the exploration of the repression of emotions, the body and the emotional body in the modern day. I expected the majority of the book to be about this but this was not the case, although many of the other points made do lead up to this (but not clearly, and I had to strain to make the links). I especially appreciated his emphasis on Dionysiac experience in old age and the enhanced awareness and presence in the body that comes with the reality that your body slows down and effectively begins to shut down
-I enjoyed listening to Flamenco and Jazz while reading this book to get a full experience of his understanding and link between the instruments and vocals on this music and Dionysus - I've thereby found a new genre of music to appreciate. He also gives appropriate reverence to dancing
- I found the pages on androgyny interesting
-I learned much about cannibalism and dismemberment which was appropriately horrific

Disclaimer: Maybe I read the book too quickly and this is one that requires digestion. Dionysus isn't an accelerated or 'fast' archetype according to this writer who attributes those qualities to the arrogant Titans. I may possibly come back to this in the future to read more slowly, in the spirit of its namesake.