Archetypes Of Helen

They fought for Helen as if she was an object in which they had to have as their property. This also shows what role a woman’s beauty can have in a Greek man’s life.

In the poems, “To Helen” and “Helen”, both Edgar Allan Poe and H.D. emphasize the beauty of the infamous Helen of Troy; however, the speakers’ attitudes differ as one praises and worships Helen while the other condemns her for her treachery and remains unmoved by her beauty.

Helen of Sparta’s portrayals in many different accounts of mythology and history are extremely dissimilar. Helen was said to be the daughter of Zeus and Leda (Queen of Sparta), and was the wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta. Helen was abducted by Paris of Troy and when Menelaus came to retrieve Helen, the Trojan war began. In “The Odyssey”, Helen is shown as living happily with Menelaus after he brought her back from Sparta. She is portrayed as an intelligent person who sees things for what they truly are, but is mostly reserved to wifely duties. In “Trojan Women” by Euripides, Helen is shown as a person who was used by the gods as a reward for Paris with nothing else in mind. However, she fights vehemently for her own innocence in the

The chorus during one of their observations blames the Trojan War on Helen, the most beautiful women of all the land who was whisked away by Paris of Greece. "He had skill in the swordplay, He went down so tall in the onslaught, All for another's women" page 119. The chorus was talking about the men of Greece sent to go to war. Explaining that the men may have fought a good battle

In Homer’s work, the Trojan War is fought not for conquest or wealth but for the honor of the Spartan king Menelaus after he had his wife taken by Paris of Troy. In the eyes of the Greeks, this was a slight on his honor worthy of war. Early on in the work, Helen despairs at being the cause of the war. She laments

Leda was a beautiful maid who attracted Zeus; the mighty God transformed himself into the form of a swan with his divine powers and raped Leda. The outcome of this was the birth of Helen of Troy. The four stanzas reflect upon the actual scene of the rape, where Zeus (as a swan) attacks Leda.

In “The Trojan Women,” there are four enduring women who dominate the play and only two men who say anything at all. Moving us with their rants and dramatic reactions, these women engulf the audience in overwhelming grief and irresistible pride. Euripides emphasizes these four women to help us understand one of his main themes. Hecuba with her pride, Cassandra with her virginity and uncanny wisdom, Andromache with her misery and heartache, and Helen with her powerful, seductive reasoning all represent superior illustrations of feminism throughout the play.

Helen's situation is also distinguished by the fact that she is the only woman targeted by the Trojan women themselves for hatred and condemnation. They accuse her of being the cause of the war that has brought death to all the Trojan warrior heroes and has culminated in the downfall of Troy itself. She is also considered to be the nuisance of her own kinsmen, the Greeks. In the eyes of the Trojan women, including Hecuba, Helen lacks “womanly virtues” and is completely bereaved of refined sentiments. Her renowned beauty is a trap that she deliberately and opportunistically utilizes to manipulate men like Paris in her greedy quest for bodily pleasures and luxurious

as the woman for whose sake the Trojan War was fought.But Helen is something more than that.She is depicted within a framework of multiple

“But now, Troy is no more. Nothing will ever rise from this mound again. Sacked. Gutted. A smoldering ruin” (Euripides 41). This description of Troy from Trojan Women by Euripides is perfectly embodied by Michael Cacoyannis in the 1971 film, The Trojan Women. With screams of terror, dust in the air, and chaos throughout the ruined streets of Troy, Cacoyannis paints a violently surreal portrait of the sorrowful Trojan women, ripped apart by the lengthy war. Although some artistic liberties were taken with the recreation of this ancient play, I believe Cacoyannis’ choices expand upon the legends of Helen and help to further illustrate the brutal tales of Troy. The overall plot is devout to Euripides original Trojan Women and contains practically

While this circumstance may be easy enough to understand, such setting or background in the plot actually entails more history: Even before Paris was born, a prophecy was carried out that the handsome prince would cause the destruction of Troy; thus, King Priam and his queen banished the baby to be raised in the wilderness. Later on, as a shepherd, he encountered the three goddesses, Hera, Pallas Athene, and Aphrodite, and set the motion of what would be the war that extinguished the Trojan line—Paris was to decide who is the most beautiful of the goddesses. Each goddess tried to bribe him with promises of power, riches, fame, and glory, but it was Aphrodite who succeeded in the end as she promised Paris that he can have the most beautiful mortal, Helen. This simple arrangement would then serve as the catalyst of a war that would kill thousands of Trojans and Greeks as soon it is revealed that Paris has stolen Helen and the gods and goddesses of Olympus have each taken sides on the war which would further complicate the lives of the people of Troy and Greece. (Buck Jr. , 11-12)

Nevertheless, most of women characters in Greek mythology have shown us feminism in variety of characters: goddesses, huntresses, and princesses. First, speaking of goddesses, the most powerful goddess that is almost equal to supreme god of Olympus, Zeus should not be anyone but “Hera” (Symenidou, 2014). She has reputation about punishing her husband’s mistresses in terrible ways. If she knew Zeus being unfaithful with any women, she would punish those women but not her husband. Not only Hera who is powerful in Olympus but also Athena.

The suspected start of the war- over the abduction of Helen, Queen of Sparta- was caused entirely by a godly conflict over who was the most beautiful- Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. Paris, son of King Priam of Troy, was selected to judge. He chose Aphrodite, who in turn gave him Helen, who was her equivalent in beauty amongst humans. In both versions, Paris is portrayed as a wife stealing, thief in the night. His brother Hector and he were on a peace mission in Sparta on behalf of Troy visiting the king, Menelaus, when Paris ran off with Menelaus' wife, Helen. This action divides the Gods who constantly meddle with the mortal's lives. Naturally, Aphrodite is on the Trojans' side, as was her lover and God of War, Ares, and Apollo. Although Zeus, King of Gods, tried to be neutral, he was pro-Trojan. Hera, Queen of Gods, and Athena help the Greeks because they were mad that Paris chose Aphrodite. Poseidon, God of the Sea and Zeus' brother, also sided with the Greeks whenever Zeus was not looking. An example of this constant intrusiveness of the Gods in the Iliad was when King "Menelaus hurls his spear, lightly wounding Paris. Paris' helmet strap becomes caught at his chin and Menelaus has nearly dragged him away before Aphrodite intervenes, breaking the strap. She then wraps Paris in a mist, sets him in his own perfumed bedchamber, and hurries to catch Helen" (Bloom 13). Of

Helen, the fairest woman on earth, was already married. Her husband, Menealus, was the king of Sparta. Paris, under Aphrodite's protection, sailed to Sparta, won Helen's love, and carried her off to Troy. Menelaus had to go to battle against Troy to defend his honor and retake Helen as his wife. Thus a combination of Eris's temper; Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite's jealousy; and Helen's beauty caused the war.

• Helens promiscuity is alluded to as she is described as a “woman manned by many” and the cause of the Trojan War.