It was through a quarrel among the three goddesses, Juno, Venus, and
Minerva, that Œnone, the fair nymph of Mount Ida, met her sad fate, and
that the destruction of Troy was brought about. The strife arose on the
occasion of the marriage of Peʹleus and Theʹtis. Peleus was a king of
Thesʹsa-ly, in Greece, and one of the great heroes of those days. Thetis
was a daughter of the sea god Neʹre-us, who had fifty daughters, all
beautiful sea nymphs, called "Ne-reʹi-des," from the name of their
father. Their duty was to attend upon the greater sea gods, and
especially to obey the orders of Neptune.
Thetis was so beautiful that Jupiter himself wished to marry her, but
the Fates told him she was destined to have a son who would be greater
than his father. The king of heaven having no desire that a son of his
should be greater than himself, gave up the idea of wedding the fair
nymph of the sea, and consented that she should be the wife of Peleus,
who had long loved and wooed her. But Thetis, being a goddess, was
unwilling to marry a mortal man. However, she at last consented, and
all the gods and goddesses, with one exception, were present at the
marriage feast.
For in the elder time, when truth and worth
Were still revered and cherished here on earth,
The tenants of the skies would oft descend
To heroes' spotless homes, as friend to friend;
There meet them face to face, and freely share
In all that stirred the hearts of mortals there.
CATULLUS (Martin's tr.).
The one exception was Eʹris, or Dis-corʹdi-a, the goddess of discord.
This evil-minded deity had at one time been a resident of Olympus, but
she caused so much dissension and quarreling there that Jupiter banished
her forever from the heavenly mansions. The presence of such a being as
a guest on so happy an occasion was not very desirable, and therefore no
invitation was sent to her.
Thus slighted, the goddess of discord resolved to have revenge by doing
all that she could to disturb the peace and harmony of the marriage
feast. With this evil purpose she suddenly appeared in the midst of the
company, and threw on the table a beautiful golden apple, on which were
inscribed the words, "Let it be given to the fairest."
"This was cast upon the board,
When all the full-faced presence of the gods
Ranged in the halls of Peleus; whereupon
Rose feud, with question unto whom 'twere due."
TENNYSON, _Œnone_.
At once all the goddesses began to claim the glittering prize of beauty.
Each contended that she was the "fairest," and therefore should have the
"fruit of pure Hesperian gold
That smelt ambrosially."
But soon the only competitors were Juno, Venus, and Minerva, the other
goddesses having withdrawn their claims. The contest then became more
bitter, and at last Jupiter was called upon to act as judge in the
dispute. This delicate task the king of heaven declined to undertake. He
knew that whatever way he might decide, he would be sure to offend two
of the three goddesses, and thereby destroy the peace of his own
household. It was necessary, however, that an umpire should be chosen to
put an end to the strife, and doubtless it was the decree of the Fates
that the lot should fall on the handsome young shepherd of Mount Ida.
His wisdom and prudence were well known to the gods, and all seemed to
agree that he was a fit person to decide so great a contest.
Paris was therefore appointed umpire. By Jupiter's command the golden
apple was sent to him, to be given to that one of the three goddesses
whom he should judge to be the most beautiful. The goddesses themselves
were directed to appear before him on Mount Ida, so that, beholding
their charms, he might be able to give a just decision. The English
poet, Tennyson, in his poem "Œnone," gives a fine description of the
three contending deities standing in the presence of the Trojan prince,
each in her turn trying, by promise of great reward, to persuade him to
declare in her favor. Juno spoke first, and she offered to bestow kingly
power and immense wealth upon Paris, if he would award the prize to her.
"She to Paris made
Proffer of royal power, ample rule
Unquestion'd. . . . . . . .
'Honor,' she said, 'and homage, tax and toll,
From many an inland town and haven large.'"
Minerva next addressed the judge, and she promised him great wisdom and
knowledge, as well as success in war, if he would give the apple to her.
Then Venus approached the young prince, who all the while held the
golden prize in his hand. She had but few words to say, for she was
confident in the power of her beauty and the tempting bribe she was
about to offer.
"She with a subtle smile in her mild eyes,
The herald of her triumph, drawing nigh
Half-whisper'd in his ear, 'I promise thee
The fairest and most loving wife in Greece.'
She spoke and laugh'd."
The subtle smile and the whispered promise won the heart of Paris.
Forgetful of Œnone, and disregarding the promises of the other
goddesses, he awarded the prize to Venus.
He consign'd
To her soft hand the fruit of burnished rind;
And foam-born Venus grasp'd the graceful meed,
Of war, of evil war, the quickening seed.
COLUTHUS (Elton's tr.).
Such was the famous judgment of Paris. It was perhaps a just decision,
for it may be supposed that Venus, being the goddess of beauty, was
really the most beautiful of the three. But the story does not give us a
very high idea of the character of Paris, who now no longer took
pleasure in the company of Œnone. All his thoughts and affections were
turned away from her by the promise of Venus. He had grown weary, too,
of his simple and innocent life among his flocks and herds on the
mountain. He therefore wished much for some adventure that would take
him away from scenes which had become distasteful to him.
[Illustration: PARIS.
_Vatican, Rome._]
The opportunity soon came. A member of King Priam's family having died,
it was announced that the funeral would be celebrated by athletic
games, as was the custom in ancient times. Paris resolved to go down to
the city and take part in these games. Prizes were to be offered for
competition, and one of the prizes was to be the finest bull that could
be picked from the herds on Mount Ida. Now it happened that the bull
selected belonged to Paris himself, but it could not be taken without
his consent. He was willing, however, to give it for the games on
condition that he should be permitted to enter the list of competitors.
The condition was agreed to, and so the shepherd prince parted from
Œnone and went to the funeral games at Troy. He intended, perhaps, to
return sometime, but it was many years before he saw the fair nymph of
Mount Ida again,--not until he was about to die of a wound received from
one of the Greeks in the Trojan War. Œnone knew what was to happen, for
Apollo had conferred upon her the gift of prophecy, and she warned Paris
that if he should go away from her he would bring ruin on himself and
his country, telling him also that he would seek for her help when it
would be too late to save him. These predictions, as we shall see, were
fulfilled. Œnone's grief and despair in her loneliness after the
departure of Paris are touchingly described in Tennyson's poem:
"O happy Heaven, how canst thou see my face?
O happy earth, how canst thou bear my weight?
O death, death, death, thou ever-floating cloud,
There are enough unhappy on this earth,
Pass by the happy souls, that love to live:
I pray thee, pass before my light of life,
And shadow all my soul, that I may die.
Thou weighest heavy on the heart within,
Weigh heavy on my eyelids: let me die."
At the athletic games in Troy everybody admired the noble appearance of
Paris, but nobody knew who he was. In the competitions he won all the
first prizes, for Venus had given him godlike strength and swiftness. He
defeated even Hector, who was the greatest athlete of Troy. Hector,
angry at finding himself and all the highborn young men of the city
beaten by an unknown stranger, resolved to put him to death, and Paris
would probably have been killed, had he not fled for safety into the
temple of Jupiter. Cassandra, who happened to be in the temple at the
time, noticed Paris closely, and observing that he bore a strong
resemblance to her brothers, she asked him about his birth and age. From
his answers she was satisfied that he was her brother, and she at once
introduced him to the king. Further inquiries were then made. The old
shepherd, Archelaus, to whom Paris had been delivered in his infancy to
be exposed on Mount Ida, was still living, and he came and told his
story. Then King Priam and Queen Hecuba joyfully embraced and welcomed
their son, never thinking of the terrible dream or of the prophecy of
Æsacus. Hector, no longer angry or jealous, was glad to see his brother,
and proud of his victories in the games. Everybody rejoiced except
Cassandra. She knew the evil which was to come to Troy through Paris,
but nobody would give credit to what the "mad prophetess" said.
Thus restored to his high position as a prince of the royal house of
Troy, Paris now resided in his father's palace, apparently contented and
happy. But the promise made to him on Mount Ida, which he carefully
concealed from his family, was always in his mind. His thoughts were
ever turned toward Greece, where dwelt the fairest woman of those times.
This was Helen, wife of Men-e-laʹus, king of Sparʹta, celebrated
throughout the ancient world for her matchless beauty. Paris had been
promised the fairest woman for his wife, and he felt sure that it could
be no other than the far-famed Helen. To Greece therefore he resolved to
go, as soon as there should be an excuse for undertaking what was then a
long and dangerous voyage of many weeks, though in our day it is no more
than a few hours' sail.
The occasion was found when King Priam resolved to send ambassadors to
the island of Salamis to demand the restoration of his sister Hesione,
whom Hercules had carried off many years before. Her husband, Telamon,
was now dead, but his son Aʹjax still held her as a prisoner at his
court. Priam had never forgotten his sister's love for himself, for she
it was, as will be remembered, who redeemed him from slavery and placed
him on his father's throne. He now determined that she should be brought
back to her native country, and Paris earnestly begged permission to
take charge of the expedition which was to be sent to Salamis for that
purpose. Priam consented, and a fleet worthy to convey the son of the
king of Troy and his retinue to Greece was built by Pherʹe-clus, a
skillful Trojan craftsman, whom the goddess Minerva (Pallas) had
instructed in all kinds of workmanship.
For loved by Pallas, Pallas did impart
To him the shipwright's and the builder's art.
Beneath his hand the fleet of Paris rose,
The fatal cause of all his country's woes.
POPE, _Iliad_, Book V.
Before the departure of the fleet, Cassandra raised her voice of
warning, but as usual her words were not heeded, and so Paris set sail.
He reached the shores of Greece in safety; but instead of proceeding to
Salamis to demand Hesione from King Ajax, he steered his vessels to the
coast of Sparta. This he did under the guidance and direction of Venus,
who was now about to fulfill the promise by which she had won the golden
prize on Mount Ida.
Landing in Sparta, Paris hastened to the court of Menelaus, where he was
hospitably received. The king gave banquets in his honor and invited him
to prolong his stay in Sparta, and the beautiful Queen Helen joined in
her husband's kind attentions to their guest.
Soon after the arrival of Paris, the king of Sparta received an
invitation to take part in a hunting expedition in the island of Crete.
Having no suspicion of the evil design of Paris, he accepted the
invitation. He departed for Crete, leaving to his queen the duty of
entertaining the Trojan prince until his return. Then Paris, taking
advantage of the absence of Menelaus, induced Helen to desert her
husband and her home, and go with him to Troy. He told her of the
promise of Venus, and assured her that she would be received with great
honor in his father's palace, and protected against the anger of
Menelaus.
From her husband's stranger-sheltering home
He tempted Helen o'er the ocean foam.
COLUTHUS (Elton's tr.).
[Illustration: ABDUCTION OF HELEN.
_Painting by Deutsch._]
Helen having consented, Paris carried her off in his fleet. At the same
time he carried away a vast quantity of treasure in gold and other
costly things which belonged to King Menelaus. On the voyage homeward
the ships were driven by a storm to the shores of the island of
Cranʹa-e, where Paris and Helen remained for some time. When at last
they reached the Trojan capital they were cordially welcomed by King
Priam and Queen Hecuba, and in a short time they were married, and the
event was celebrated with great rejoicing.
But all the people of Troy did not take part in this rejoicing. Hector,
the son of Priam, and others of his wisest counselors, strongly censured
the conduct of Paris, and they advised the king to send Helen back to
Sparta. But Priam would not listen to their prudent advice, and so she
remained in Troy.
The great beauty of Helen has been celebrated by poets in ancient and
modern times. Tennyson, in his "Dream of Fair Women," introduces her as
one of the forms of the vision he describes:
"I saw a lady within call,
Stiller than chisell'd marble, standing there;
A daughter of the gods, divinely tall,
And most divinely fair."