Hector and Helen

Hector and Helen

The characters in homer 's Iliad have from time to time afforded a first class battleground for scholars and students alike . Through parallels contrasts , and counter positioning of characters and actions , the principle characters have been analyzed and objectified as embodiments of certain ideals permeating the Greek society . Helen , like Klytaimestra , Pandora , Medea and Phaedra has been portrayed as the exemplar of the females sub-ordination to the irrational - particularly sex (Thorton .84 . In her , the destructive specter of a mind dominated by passion and compulsive pleasure endangers men

: the defenders of the ideals of the polis . Here , the threat posed by Helen is two pronged that is : the irresistible allure of her beauty and the mind confusing fire of sexual lust she ignites on the other hand , the violation of her marriage to Menelaus by Alexandros precipitates a war which degenerates into a tragic contest for honor and glory . In this essay , the relationship between Helen and Hector will be analyzed with reference the themes outlined above

In the Iliad , Hector is the bulwark of Trojan defense . He is the only thing which stands between the Achaians and victory . Besides Achilles all the other warriors doubt if they can stop him (Il .15 .639-63 .7 Il .10 .47-52 Il .7 .112-114 . But Hector 's tragedy is that he is destroyed fighting a war he does not believe in . When he harangues Alexandros for scampering away from Menelaus (Il .3 .35-55 , he not only reveals his disaffection with...