Analsysis #1 - Who Could Blame a Girl?

Who Could Blame a Girl?

In Gorgias’s, Encomium of Helen, through the use of rhetoric, he defends Helen’s actions of infidelity using several different reasons. They are as follows: the fact that her parents were gods and it was her destiny, her beauty was immeasurable, the persuasion of speech (logos), and the idea that she may have just been besotted with love. In the movie, First Knight, Lady Guinevere’s actions are supported in a similar way that Gorgias defends Helen of Troy’s actions.

Gorgias proposed that because Helen’s parents were gods, it was probably this reason that her actions could not have been different. “The will of fortune and the plan of the gods.” (39) In essence, she was not in charge of her own destiny, therefore no matter what she did to prevent her infidelity, it was her fate and that could not be altered. In addition, Helen was said to have been blessed with an undeniable beauty that men couldn’t resist, and because of this beauty that “aroused erotic passions in many men,” (39) how could anyone fault Helen for being led astray? If a man became a victim to Helen’s beauty, it was not her problem; it was theirs. If these reasons were not convincing enough, it is very possible, according to Gorgias, that Helen was persuaded by speech. Gorgias makes it clear that, “A speech persuaded a soul that was persuaded by what was said and to consent to what was done. The persuader then, is the wrongdoer.” (39) Finally, he makes his last point that maybe Helen was just besotted with love and who can argue with that?

In the attached clip of, First Knight, Lady Guinevere and Sir Lancelot are thrown together in a passionate embrace. Under normal circumstances this might not be a problem, however, Lady Guinevere is married to King Arthur. In support of her actions of this illicit affair, one might argue through rhetoric that because King Arthur was the age of her father, her sexual desires for a younger man were only natural. Sir Lancelot was handsome, younger, carefree in his actions and protective of her. How could a she be faulted for falling victim to him? Furthermore, one could argue that because she was impressionable, by proof that she joined King Arthur in marriage at his persuasion, in an attempt to protect her city from the rebels, she could have easily been coerced by Sir Lancelot through his words, (logos) that they belonged together. As Gorgias has said in his Encomium of Helen, “Speech is a powerful master and achieves the most divine feats with the smallest and least evident body.” (39)

Lady Guinevere was incapable of denying Sir Lancelot’s charm and the intense attraction that he had for her, and vice versa. Because of this, it wouldn’t be fair to condemn Lady Guinevere and blame her for the affair. She was a victim and because of the way Sir Lancelot pursued her she wouldn’t have been able to resist his charm and the love he felt for her.

Both Helen of Troy and Lady Guinevere were helpless against the deep desires they felt for their pursuers. These men used seductive persuasion by their words, actions and physical contact to win the hearts of the woman they loved. In the end, how could either woman be blamed for falling in love with handsome, younger men? I only hope that one day this argument could benefit women in the 21st century.

Works Cited:
Gorgias, Encomium of Helen, The Norton Anthology of Theory & Criticism
Leitch, New York, 2010, 2001 - p 39

First Knight, 1995
Director, Jerry Zucker
Perf. Sean Connery, Richard Gere, Julia Ormond