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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
Helen is an post-Trojan war alternate history: we being with Helen alone in Egypt explaining that after Paris came for her at Sparta Hera whisked her off to Sparta and sent Paris off with some sort of copy that he thought was Helen:
"But Hera, hating having lost,
turned my affair with Paris into wind.
She gave king Priam's on an empty image,
not me but something like me, made of air
but breathing. So he thought that he had me,
but it was just an empty false appearance."
Helen was safe in Egypt until the king died and his son wants to rape and marry her. At this moment Menelaus shows up having spent seven years at sea following the war and after an initial lack of recognition they pair up and formulate a plan of escape--which is made more difficult because the king's sister is omniscient. Ultimately through disguises and a burial trick (almost identical to the plot of [b:Iphigenia among the Taurians|20694759|Iphigenia among the Taurians|Anne Carson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1400938018l/20694759._SY75_.jpg|6278905]) and a bloody escape/chase scene they make it out--with a bit of deus ex machina by Castor and Pollux to help them along.
All of it feels like a light action/adventure story more than a fully fledged tragedy. There is a little of the lessons around politics and duty (namely that the new king's sister was right to betray him because he was doing something wrong in the eyes of his own late father and the gods), but mostly it is about the suspense of whether and how Helen and Menelaus will escape.
I should add that seeing Helen portrayed this sympathetically, hearing so much from her, and having her resist the entreaties and worse from men was an interesting twist on her general invisibility in the set of poems, plays and stories that ultimately center around her in important respects.
(Note: I read the translation by [a:Emily Wilson|478455|Emily Wilson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1523444389p2/478455.jpg] in [b:The Greek Plays: Sixteen Plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides|25893680|The Greek Plays Sixteen Plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides|Mary Lefkowitz|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1469408925l/25893680._SY75_.jpg|45775582].)
"But Hera, hating having lost,
turned my affair with Paris into wind.
She gave king Priam's on an empty image,
not me but something like me, made of air
but breathing. So he thought that he had me,
but it was just an empty false appearance."
Helen was safe in Egypt until the king died and his son wants to rape and marry her. At this moment Menelaus shows up having spent seven years at sea following the war and after an initial lack of recognition they pair up and formulate a plan of escape--which is made more difficult because the king's sister is omniscient. Ultimately through disguises and a burial trick (almost identical to the plot of [b:Iphigenia among the Taurians|20694759|Iphigenia among the Taurians|Anne Carson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1400938018l/20694759._SY75_.jpg|6278905]) and a bloody escape/chase scene they make it out--with a bit of deus ex machina by Castor and Pollux to help them along.
All of it feels like a light action/adventure story more than a fully fledged tragedy. There is a little of the lessons around politics and duty (namely that the new king's sister was right to betray him because he was doing something wrong in the eyes of his own late father and the gods), but mostly it is about the suspense of whether and how Helen and Menelaus will escape.
I should add that seeing Helen portrayed this sympathetically, hearing so much from her, and having her resist the entreaties and worse from men was an interesting twist on her general invisibility in the set of poems, plays and stories that ultimately center around her in important respects.
(Note: I read the translation by [a:Emily Wilson|478455|Emily Wilson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1523444389p2/478455.jpg] in [b:The Greek Plays: Sixteen Plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides|25893680|The Greek Plays Sixteen Plays by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides|Mary Lefkowitz|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1469408925l/25893680._SY75_.jpg|45775582].)
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
ειδολονThis edition was translated by Robert Emmet Meagher (who also wrote Helen: Myth, Legend, and the Culture of Misogyny, which always reminds me of Bettany Hughes's book, Helen of Troy: Goddess, Princess, Whore). It's pretty good.
This review is of the translation by James Michie and Colin Leach.
Euripides's Ἑλένη, translated by James Michie and Colin Leach, first published in 1981. (This translation, that is. The original play dates back to ca. 412 BCE.) I'm not particularly fond of the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series (so far I've also read Seven Against Thebes, Medea, Cyclops, Hippolytos, and Bakhai). I prefer the translation by Robert Emmet Meagher.
Euripides's Ἑλένη, translated by James Michie and Colin Leach, first published in 1981. (This translation, that is. The original play dates back to ca. 412 BCE.) I'm not particularly fond of the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series (so far I've also read Seven Against Thebes, Medea, Cyclops, Hippolytos, and Bakhai). I prefer the translation by Robert Emmet Meagher.
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Though I thoroughly enjoyed the play, I don't think this translation is for me! It felt off in places that I can't describe, and I just rushed through it. The ache in my soul that Ancient Greek texts often create just didn't happen.
I definitely want to read another translation and then come back to this!
I definitely want to read another translation and then come back to this!
I actually read Emily Wilson's translation (not the above version) and it really was a treat, would definitely recommend.
This one was a new one for me; I thought I knew all the versions of Helen. But the ancient Greek conspiracy fan-fiction theory?? Epic.
PARIS JUST TOOK A PHANTOM GHOST-HELEN TO TROY WHA-WHAT. The really real Helen lived a virtuous, loyal life in Egypt pining for Menelaus.
lol
I loved the twist. I loved that Helen is sad, but also smart. Powerful. Saves herself and her husband. She's honest (you can't beat up the Egyptian king, honey) and wily (oh me oh my! I guess I'll marry you now!) and pretty dang humble considering she's the most beautiful thing to walk on Earth.
And perhaps some not-so-subtle pacifist eyebrow wagging about the futility of going to war over an illusion? Euripides has some GALL.
Totally dug it.
PARIS JUST TOOK A PHANTOM GHOST-HELEN TO TROY WHA-WHAT. The really real Helen lived a virtuous, loyal life in Egypt pining for Menelaus.
lol
I loved the twist. I loved that Helen is sad, but also smart. Powerful. Saves herself and her husband. She's honest (you can't beat up the Egyptian king, honey) and wily (oh me oh my! I guess I'll marry you now!) and pretty dang humble considering she's the most beautiful thing to walk on Earth.
And perhaps some not-so-subtle pacifist eyebrow wagging about the futility of going to war over an illusion? Euripides has some GALL.
Totally dug it.
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The idea of Helen and her role in the Trojan War is a theme that is open to endless revisitation. Even in the time of Euripides, it was an open question of how she should be interpreted.
The question is often whether she should be seen as unfaithful to her husband or the victim of kidnapping who did her best to survive. Euripides sets both options aside and asks what if she were just an unfortunate bystander, removed from the action and bearing the burdens of misunderstanding and baseless accusation. What if greater powers were using her and forgetting her in the process?
The way this connects to The Iliad itself is a stretch, perhaps, but how fantastical is too fantastical when we are dealing with stories of warring gods? You may not relate to clones made of air and being flown to Egypt on a cloud, but the play is a means to ask who deserves blame and credit for conflict? How are women commodified and trivialized when circumstances change? What’s the definition of marital loyalty?
It’s not perfect, and many of the chanted sections will be hard to follow for modern audiences. But beyond the immediate, there’s a story worth telling. It’s not that long; give it a shot.
The question is often whether she should be seen as unfaithful to her husband or the victim of kidnapping who did her best to survive. Euripides sets both options aside and asks what if she were just an unfortunate bystander, removed from the action and bearing the burdens of misunderstanding and baseless accusation. What if greater powers were using her and forgetting her in the process?
The way this connects to The Iliad itself is a stretch, perhaps, but how fantastical is too fantastical when we are dealing with stories of warring gods? You may not relate to clones made of air and being flown to Egypt on a cloud, but the play is a means to ask who deserves blame and credit for conflict? How are women commodified and trivialized when circumstances change? What’s the definition of marital loyalty?
It’s not perfect, and many of the chanted sections will be hard to follow for modern audiences. But beyond the immediate, there’s a story worth telling. It’s not that long; give it a shot.