Beauty - Helen of Troy

Details

Category: Literature

Published on Thursday, 09 April 2020 14:12

Our current concept of beauty is still shaped by the beauty ideals of antiquity. We all know the white marble statues and paintings on pottery showing more or less naked women and men. Even if the statues are most probably not the perfect depiction of existing people, but represent an idealized version, they can teach us something about the concept of beauty at that time.

A common feature of the sculptures are the clear lines and good proportions. Symmetry, harmony and proportions were key aspects of the ancient beauty ideal and for some philosophers, beauty was therefore closely related to mathematics. Moreover, physical beauty was directly associated with moral beauty. Therefore, an attractive look was the expression of a good character.  What exactly was considered as beautiful differed between men and women. While men were supposed to be athletic and tanned due to the exercising outdoors, women ideally had a bright skin which also was a status symbol showing the wealthiness as people working on the fields automatically got tanned. In general, the skin was very important for the people of the ancient Greece. Different oils and make-up were used for the skin care and in order to meet the beauty ideal.

The incorporation of the female beauty ideals was the goddess of love and beauty Aphrodite. But a second woman representing the ideal of beauty was the princess Helen of Troy whose beauty led to the Trojan war. If you are interested in finding out more about the exciting life of Helen of Troy, check out the book “Helen of Troy” by Bettany Hughes. Based on various sources, the author created an astonishing multi-faceted novel elucidating the personality and life of “the embodiment of absolute female beauty and reminder of the terrible power that beauty can wield” (https://books.google.gr/books/about/Helen_of_Troy.html?id=nA8SAQAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y).