With its mixture of transcendent poetry, scatological slapstick, and sharp satire, THE FROGS makes the case for the arts, particularly theatre, as a means of salvation for our war-prone society. The god Dionysos and his slave Xanthias travel to the underworld in order to bring the great tragic poet Euripides back to earth so that mankind may benefit from his counsel. On the way to hell, the travelers encounter a variety of gods and demi-gods eager to either help or hinder them. Once in Pluto's realm, Dionysos judges a contest between Euripides and Aeschylos. In a virtuoso display of literary satire, Aristophanes pits the two poets' writing styles and visions of society against each other, coming to a startling and enlightening conclusion for the best way to save a civilization imploding under the weight of its own achievements.