When discussing the relationship of ancient gods and humans, one must first explore the nature of the divine and human behavior. A unique attribute of ancient mythological literature is the application of anthropomorphism in regards to the divinity. The human-like characteristics given to each eternal god and goddess inspire unique personality traits and courses of action. In both Hippolytus and The Bacchae, divine characters exhibit human characteristics that are flawed, both in realms of divinity as well as mortality. By doing so, Euripides disrupts the human and god relationship by exposing the impurities of divinity and questions the purpose of human worship.
             The divinities inspire a fear among their mortal followers. In Hippolytus, Aphrodite is depicted as a terrifying and vengeful goddess with immense power. Inspired by jealousy, the entire play is a tragic consequence of her revenge. The main victim of Aphrodite's revenge is Hippolytus, as he chooses to focus his worship on the goddess Artemis and to commit to a life of chastity. The narrative begins with Aphrodite proclaiming her presence among mortals, "I am the Goddess Cyprus I treat well those who revere my power, but I trip up those who are proud towards me. For this principle holds among the race of the gods also; they enjoy being honored by mortals." (pg 94). In these few lines, Aphrodite proclaims her divinity, establishes the proper etiquette mortals should have towards gods and goddess alike and validates her revenge against Hippolytus. She continues to explain "But I will punish Hippolytus this day for the wrongs he has done me. I won't need much toil since long before this I prepared most of what has to be done." (pg 94). This proclamation serves as much more of a threat than the reveal of the narrative's plot, as Euripides is warning future violators that Aphrodite is not only prepared to deal with such behavior but also, such extreme means of revenge come wit...