Helen of Troy will forever be known as the most beautiful woman of Greek mythology. The original legend states that during a wedding celebration among the gods, the goddess Eris threw a golden apple into the crowd as a reward for the most beautiful goddess present at the celebration (Jestice). Prince Paris of Troy needed to choose the winner of the contest, and he chose Aphrodite (Jestice). As a reward for choosing her, Aphrodite promised Paris the most beautiful woman in the world- and that was the already married Grecian Queen Helen (Jestice). Afraid that Helen's beauty would start a battle between different rulers, an agreement was put into place that stated any male that stole Helen from Menelaus would face a war upon them until she was returned home (Jestice). Soon enough, that situation presented itself. Throughout the war that began after the kidnapping of Helen from her husband Menelaus (Jestice). Helen unfortunately did not have much control of what happened to her, and according to Phyllis G. Jestice Helen, "remains a pawn to the end."
Another version of Helen's tale says that Paris was a shepherd that the goddesses choose to make the judgment (Hackney). As in each of the stories, the three goddesses tried to bribe Paris: Hera offered him power and wealth, Athena offered him victory in war, and Aphrodite offered him the most beautiful woman in the world (Hackney).And when Paris picked Aphrodite, it created a problem; the most beautiful woman in the world was a Greek queen named Helen, who later became known as Helen of Troy (Hackney). Helen was already married to Menelaus, King of Sparta (Hackney). To make matters worse, when
Menelaus had married Helen, all the other great lords of Greece who had been interested in marrying her swore that if she were kidnapped they would all help to bring
her back (Hackney). As a result, this infamous kidnapping according to legend, is what sparked the Battle of Troy.
Another version of Helen's tale says that Paris was a shepherd that the goddesses choose to make the judgment (Hackney). As in each of the stories, the three goddesses tried to bribe Paris: Hera offered him power and wealth, Athena offered him victory in war, and Aphrodite offered him the most beautiful woman in the world (Hackney).And when Paris picked Aphrodite, it created a problem; the most beautiful woman in the world was a Greek queen named Helen, who later became known as Helen of Troy (Hackney). Helen was already married to Menelaus, King of Sparta (Hackney). To make matters worse, when
Menelaus had married Helen, all the other great lords of Greece who had been interested in marrying her swore that if she were kidnapped they would all help to bring
her back (Hackney). As a result, this infamous kidnapping according to legend, is what sparked the Battle of Troy.
Works Cited
Helen of Troy. N.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
Hackney, Ryan. "Trojan War." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.
ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 29 Mar. 2014
Jestice, Phyllis G. "Helen of Troy." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO,
2014.Web. 28 Mar. 2014.
Helen of Troy. N.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
Hackney, Ryan. "Trojan War." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.
ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 29 Mar. 2014
Jestice, Phyllis G. "Helen of Troy." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO,
2014.Web. 28 Mar. 2014.