Helen

by Euripides

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▾LibraryThing recommendations

The Phoenician Women by Euripides (1981)
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Same series: Eumenides (The Oresteia)
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A less famous play by Euripides in which he presents an alternative reality in which Helen never really went to Troy.

Written in the shadow of the Peloponnesian War, the play critically exposes the futility of war and the horrors which accompany it. The social commentary is quite advanced and sadly relevant even to the modern day.

This is the old-school translation; expect 19th century style language.

Worth a read. (

)

deusvitae | Oct 16, 2012 |

My favourite 5th century BC Greek play. In this one the always interesting Euripides gives his twist on the legend of Helen of Troy. According to this version, Helen never actually got to Troy but was hiding out in Egypt until all the brouhaha died down. I'm really not a fan of reading plays (and this is my tenth this year--two more to go), but this one is great. (

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Nickelini | Dec 9, 2008 |

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Euripides	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Warner, Rex	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

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Is contained in

19 Plays: Alcestis / Andromache / Bacchae / Children of Heracles / Cyclops / Electra / Hecuba / Helen / Heracles / Hippolyta / Ion / Iphigenia in Aulis / Iphigenia in Tauris / Medea / Orestes / Phonecian Women / Rhesus / Suppliant Women / Trojan Women by Euripides

Euripides by Euripides

10 Plays: Alcestis / Andromache / Children of Heracles / Helen / Hippolytus / Ion / Medea / Rhesus / Suppliant Women / Trojan Women by Euripides

4 Plays: Electra / Helen / Hippolytus / Medea by Euripides

11 Plays: Alcestis / Andromache / Children of Heracles / Electra / Hecuba / Helen / Heracles / Hippolytus / Medea / Suppliant Women / Trojan Women by Euripides

Die grossen Tragödien: Aischylos, Sophokles, Euripides by Wolf-Hartmut Friedrich

(show 7 more)

9 Plays: Alcestis / Andromache / Bacchae / Children of Heracles / Electra / Hecuba / Helen / Heracles / Hyppolytus by Euripides

4 Plays: Helen / Ion / Iphigenia in Tauris / Phoenician Women by Euripides

4 Plays: Cyclops / Helen / Heracles / Iphigenia in Tauris by Euripides

4 Plays: Electra / Helen / Medea / Trojan Women by Euripides

4 Plays: Bacchae / Helen / Ion / Trojan Women by Euripides

3 Plays: Helen / Hippolytus / Medea by Euripides

The Greek Plays by Ellen McLaughlin

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Helen

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Greek Tragedy in New Translations

Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics

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Wikipedia in English (3)

Ancient Greek dialects

Helen of Troy

Histories (Herodotus)

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Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0195077105, Paperback)

Transcending the literal bounds of genre, Euripides' Helen has been characterized as both a comedy and a tragedy. In this evocative translation by James Michie and Colin Leach, Euripides' delicate balance--in all its subtlety of texture and tone--is beautifully captured. The reader encounters myriad reversals, worlds--real/ideal, tragic/comic--surprisingly juxtaposed and, as in any story of Helen, the pathos of the impossible, all allowing Euripides to comment of the futility of war and the difficult distinction between appearance and reality.

(retrieved from Amazon Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:53:09 -0500)

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