Helen of Troy: Beauty, Myth, DevastationMy rating: 4 of 5 stars

A fascinating study of the view of Helen of Troy through many ancient sources, focusing especially on “the twin themes of beauty and female agency” (p. xi). She covers how views of Helen changed, sometimes dramatically, through the various sources, treating her as sympathetic, evil, beautiful, ugly, strong, weak, active and passive. She is sometimes gendered as traditionally masculine vs. her suiters (e.g. Paris, Menelaus) who are often portrayed as more traditionally feminine (e.g. p. 31). The concept of guest-friendship (xenia) is woven throughout the book.

I learned several new things about Helen, e.g. that there were three versions of her birth in antiquity (p. 28-29), although one emerged as the canonical one. Grammar in the original texts plays a vital role in understanding Helen, especially in the Homeric epics, in order to see how she speaks and is spoken of by others (e.g. pp 62, 65, 115) . It is very intriguing. I’m also a fan of Euripides, so I was pleased when Blondell writes: “Deprived of her Homeric eloquence by Aeschylus, Gorgias, and many others, Helen’s voice was restored to her by playwright Euripides” (p. 182).

Each ancient source has its own chapter, so the book is both useful to read straight through or to use as a reference to individual pieces. Her Bibliographic Notes at the end were excellent. I liked that she didn’t just provide a list of titles, but discussed topics and ideas and where to find them in the sources. An excellent aid.