Who Was Helen of Troy?

<p>Dear Classical Wisdom Member,</p><p>Perhaps one of the greatest controversies surrounding the upcoming Christopher Nolan movie is the casting of Helen of Troy…</p><p>Now, I have no desire to weigh in on the fray or opine on a distracting discussion. I know nothing of the many multivaried decisions that take place in Hollywood, the hands that are shaken, the rings that are kissed, the long hours of marketing polls…</p><p>I haven’t seen the movie, and I’ll stay a (happy) skeptic until I do… because I don’t care what Helen looks like, if she does a good job.</p><p>As a lover of history, that might surprise some. </p><p>After all, the actress is a clear departure from the literary tradition (as you will see below). But, as a lover of the Classics, I’m also fully aware that myth is a very malleable thing. It may be a window into the human mind and condition, but it’s also a mirror for every generation that communes with it.</p><p>Whether it’s Euripides reimagining Helen’s whereabouts, Virgil making much of a minor character (ahem, Aeneas), or Stesichorus insisting that Helen never went to Troy at all, these stories have a long history of being adapted for new audiences to reflect their interests, worries, and, dare I say, ideals.</p><p>Trying to encapsulate the most beautiful woman is no easy task, as the history of art well demonstrates! Indeed, even our understanding of beauty changes dramatically across time and place, as fans of Rubens and Twiggy can confirm.</p><p>So let us leave the myth-making to the movie directors. Nolan is creating entertainment, after all, not a history documentary. We go to him to spend three hours enthralled, but elsewhere for ancient wisdom… somewhere like these humble pages…</p><p>As such, I’d like to dedicate today to the historicity of Helen, for those who are interested in her incredibly important past and tomorrow we can enjoy whatever interpretation Nolan offers.</p><p>The truth is, to the Mycenaean Greeks, Helen was much more than meets the eye.</p><p>First off, she wasn’t Helen of Troy, but Helen of Sparta… and second, her face may have been the least important thing about her…</p><p>Read on for the real story of Helen, below.</p><p>All the best,<br>Anya Leonard</p><p>Founder and Director<br>Classical Wisdom </p><p>P.S. Classical Wisdom Members: We will have a very big announcement in the next few days! It’s extremely exciting and involves the wine dark seas... Make sure to keep a lookout... time is of the essence. </p><div><p><strong>Whether its mythology, history, literature or philosophy, we have your Classics needs covered! </strong></p><p><strong>Make sure to subscribe to unlock all our resources, including today’s special Members In-depth article on Helen of Sparta, below:</strong></p><div><div><div><p></p></div><div><div></div><div></div></div></div></div></div><div><hr></div><h1>The Bronze Age Queen—Helen of Sparta</h1><p><em>By Mary Naples</em></p><p>Celebrated as the most beautiful woman in the world, the allure of Helen of Troy née Sparta was the yardstick for which all women were measured—-and found inadequate. Her scandalous abduction by Paris from her Spartan home triggered a ten-year-long siege on Troy which was responsible for the countless deaths of Trojans and Greeks alike. </p><p>Yet despite the abysmal carnage for which she was largely held culpable, Helen escaped Troy without a hair out of place. In one tradition Helen winds up in Egypt after the war, but if Herodotus is to be believed, she spent the entire time there. Doubtless, the Greeks were unduly obsessed with a heroine they loved to hate and have the stories to show for it. </p><p>Unsurprisingly, most of the myths which encircle this fairest of all women, involve rape. Helen herself was the product of the rape by Zeus almighty, king of the gods, of the lovely Leda, queen of Sparta. While Leda was sunbathing on the banks of the River Eurotas, an enamored Zeus turned himself into a magisterial swan and had his way with her. </p><p>As a daughter of the almighty Zeus, it is no small wonder that Helen was radiant. By some accounts, at the tender age of seven Helen was then kidnapped or raped by Theseus, the mythological first king of Athens. Theseus, like Zeus before him, was accustomed to defiling the gentler sex but a romantic interest in another daughter of Zeus—Persephone herself—-would soon lead him astray.  Ultimately, Helen’s twin brothers—Castor and Pollux— restored her to their Spartan home. </p><p>All the same, Helen the “<em>richly tressed</em>” Spartan queen is best known for fleeing with Paris to Troy after his “diplomatic” visit to Sparta. But a question that has plagued many throughout the ages is did she elope with the flamboyantly handsome Prince Paris of her own volition? </p><p>And what role, if any, did the goddess of love, Aphrodite, play in her kidnapping? </p><p><strong>Finally, could the kidnapping of a queen—even one as dazzling as Helen— have been the sole reason behind a ten-year-long war between East and West?</strong> </p><div><figure><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a><div><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a><source type="image/webp"><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg" width="690" height="1024" alt=""></a></source><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a><div><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a><div><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a></div><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a></div><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a></div><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/%24s_!zdM8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd104221-a47b-4482-ba75-7ab011d40ad2_690x1024.jpeg"></a><figcaption>Detail of Helen of Troy by <a href="https://collections.vam.ac.uk/search/?q=Canova%2C%20Antonio">Canova, Antonio</a></figcaption></figure></div><p>Recognized throughout the ages as Helen of Troy, she had always been Helen of Sparta to the Greeks. </p> <p> <a href="https://classicalwisdom.substack.com/p/who-was-helen-of-troy"> Read more </a> </p> <p><a href="https://classicalwisdom.substack.com/p/who-was-helen-of-troy" target="_blank">- Enlace a artículo -</a></p> <p>Más info en https://ift.tt/f8PpVvT / Tfno. & WA 607725547 Centro MENADEL (Frasco Martín) Psicología Clínica y Tradicional en Mijas. #Menadel #Psicología #Clínica #Tradicional #MijasPueblo</p> <p>*No suscribimos necesariamente las opiniones o artículos aquí compartidos. No todo es lo que parece.</p>