Paris (mythology)
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Paris (Greek: Πάρις; also known as Alexander or Alexandros, c.f. Alaksandus of Wilusa), mythological son of Priam, king of Troy, appears in a number of Greek legends. Probably the best-known was his abduction of, or elopement with, Helen, queen of Sparta, this being one of the immediate causes of the Trojan War. Later in the war, he fatally wounds Achilles in the heel with an arrow, as foretold by Achilles' mother, Thetis.
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[edit] Paris' childhood
In Greek mythology, Paris was the child of Priam and Hecuba; just before his birth, his mother dreamed that she gave birth to a flaming torch. This dream was interpreted by the seer Aesacus as a foretelling of the downfall of Troy, and he declared that the child would be the ruin of his homeland. On the day of Paris' birth it was further announced by Aesacus that the child born of a royal Trojan that day would have to be killed to spare the kingdom, being the child that would bring about the prophecy. Though Paris was indeed born before nightfall, he was spared by Priam; Hecuba, too, was unable to kill the child, despite the urging of the priestess of Apollo, one Herophile. Instead, Paris' father prevailed upon his chief herdsman, Agelaus, to remove the child and kill him. The herdsman, unable to use a weapon against the infant, left him exposed on Mount Ida, hoping he would perish there; he was, however, suckled by a she-bear. Returning after nine days, Agelaus was astonished to find the child still alive, and brought him home in a wallet (πήρα, hence Paris' name, which means "wallet") to rear as his own. He returned to Priam bearing a dog's tongue as evidence of the deed's completion. [1]
Paris' noble birth was betrayed by his outstanding beauty and intelligence; while still a child he routed a gang of cattle-thieves and restored the animals they had stolen to the herd, thereby earning the surname Alexander ("protector of men")[1]. It was at this time that Oenone became Paris' first lover. She was a nymph from Mount Ida in Phrygia. Her father was Cebren, a river-god (other sources declare her to be the daughter of Oeneus). She was skilled in the arts of prophecy and medicine, which she had been taught by Rhea and Apollo respectively. When Paris later left her for Helen she told him that if ever he was wounded, he should come to her for she could heal any injury, even the most serious wounds.
Paris' chief distraction at this time was to pit Agelaus' bulls against one another. One bull began to win these bouts consistently, and Paris began to set it against rival herdsmen's own prize bulls; it defeated them all. Finally Paris offered a golden crown to any bull that could defeat his champion. Ares responded to this challenge by transforming himself into a bull and easily winning the contest. Paris gave the crown to Ares without hesitation; it was this apparent honesty in judgment that prompted the gods of Olympus to have Paris arbitrate the divine contest between Hera, Aphrodite and Athena (though it may be noted that Paris did not maintain the same level of disinterest here).
[edit] The Judgement of Paris
Main article: Judgement of Paris
In celebration of the marriage of Peleus and Thetis, Lord Zeus, father of the Greek pantheon, was hosting a banquet on Mount Olympus. Every deity and demi-god had been invited, except Eris, the goddess of strife; no one wanted a troublemaker at a wedding. For revenge, Eris threw the golden Apple of Discord inscribed with the word Kallistēi — "For the most beautiful one" — into the party, provoking a squabble among the attendant goddesses over whom it had been meant for.
The women thought to be the most beautiful were Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite and they all claimed the apple. They started a quarrel, so they asked Zeus to judge them but he couldn't decide and thought a mortal should. Paris was appointed by Zeus to select the most beautiful and, escorted by Hermes, the three goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite approached him as he herded his cattle on Mount Garagarus and then immediately attempted to bribe Paris to choose them - Hera offered political power, riches and control of all of Asia; Athena offered skill in battle, wisdom and the abilities of the greatest warriors; and Aphrodite offered Helen of Troy, the most beautiful woman in the world. Paris chose Aphrodite—and Helen.
Problematically, Helen was already married to King Menelaus of Sparta, and so Paris had to raid Menelaus's house to steal Helen from him (according to some accounts, she fell in love with Paris and left willingly). The Greeks' expedition to retrieve Helen from Paris in Troy is the mythological basis of the Trojan War. This triggered the war because Helen was famous for her beauty throughout Achaea (ancient Greece), and had many suitors of extraordinary ability. Therefore, following Odysseus's advice, her father Tyndareus made the suitors all promise to defend Helen's marriage to the man she chose. When she disappeared to Troy, Menelaus invoked this oath, and Helen's other suitors—who between them represented the lion's share of Achaea's strength, wealth and military prowess, were obligated to help bring her back. Thus the entirety of Greece moved against Troy in force. The Trojan War had begun.
[edit] Paris and the Trojan War
In Homer's Iliad, Paris is portrayed as a fairly inept and cowardly fighter. His brother Hector frequently critizes him for this, though Paris readily admits his shortcomings in battle. The fact that he prefers to use a bow and arrow emphasize this, since he does not follow the code of honor of the other heroes.
Early in the epic, Paris and Menelaus duel in an attempt to end the war without further bloodshed. Menelaus easily defeats Paris, though Aphrodite spirits him away before Menelaus can finish the duel. Paris is returned to his bedchambers where Aphrodite forces Helen to be with him.
Paris' second attempt at combat is equally poor; rather than engage the Greek hero Diomedes in melee combat, Paris wounds Diomedes with an arrow through the foot. Diomedes challenges him to fight despite his wound and Paris flees.
Although the Iliad does not contain it, tradition holds that Paris killed Achilles later in the war. Many accounts attribute it to an arrow guided by Apollo, though other myths describe equally cowardly tactics.
When Paris was mortally wounded late on in the war by Philoctetes, he was borne to Mount Ida where he begged his former lover Oenone to heal him. She refused and Paris was brought back to Troy, where he died. Some sources state that her refusal was based on Paris' betrayal of her and saw his death as a just punishment, while others claim that she was prevented from aiding her love by her father. Either way, Oenone relented and pursued him down the mountain but arrived too late to help him, so she threw herself onto his funeral pyre.
After Paris died, his brother Deiphobus married Helen until his death by Menelaus.
[edit] Paris in the arts
The scene of Paris presenting an apple to (one of) the goddesses Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera (most commonly called the "Judgement of Paris") is common in post-classical western art.
Ovid presents us with a seductive letter from Paris to Helen, from his Heroides [2].
In the Divine Comedy Dante sees the soul of Paris in the second circle of Hell, being tossed around eternally by a fierce wind, along with Helen and others who succumbed to the sin of lust.
[edit] Later treatments
- In the 1956 film Helen of Troy, Paris, as the main character, is portrayed as a heroic character who at first worships peace and love but is later forced to take up arms against the treacherous Greeks.
- In the 2004 Hollywood film Troy, the character Paris was played by actor Orlando Bloom.
- In prose he appears as the main character in Rudolf Hagelstange's book Spielball der Götter (Game of Gods).
- The Judgment of Paris and its aftermath are the subject of Michael Tippett's 1962 opera King Priam.
[edit] Notes and References
- ^ For a comparison of hero births, including Sargon, Moses, Karna, Oedipus, Paris, Telephus, Perseus, Romulus, Gilgamesh, Cyrus, Jesus, and others, reference:
Rank, Otto. The Myth of the Birth of the Hero. Vintage Books: New York, 1932.
[edit] External link
