Why did Gorgias feel the need to remove the blame from Helen? What was his purpose for this speech? Did he do it for Helen, in order to give her the respect she deserves, or was his reasoning more selfish? Did he only want to display his rhetorical ability?
I kind of wonder the same thing, especially since we've discussed that this speech was used to show Gorgias' strength in swaying opinions and/or convincing people that his ideas are correct or factual. I wonder if maybe he knew the story and felt that Helen was judged unfairly and felt he could defend her using his logic and language. Maybe it's a little of both. Maybe he truly believes that she was innocent and also felt he could gain something out of his defense...
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ReplyDeleteI think Gorgias did this just to play devil's advocate. The common notion was that Helen was to blame. Many poets like Homer or Ovid often portray the women as witchy or fickle characters, probably due to the paternal sentiments of the period.
ReplyDeleteI believe it was all marketing. He was a rhetorician and wanted to show people his talents. Helen is fairly easy to blame, and to prove that she had no hand in the conflict that revolved around her takes a great deal of persuasive ability. That persuasion was exactly what Gorgias was good at, and who better to showcase that on than Helen?
ReplyDeleteI think I agree with y'all. I think that, at the time, this was a very well known story and there was definitely a consensus. Why Gorgias chose this particular case to argue could very likely have been that no one else in their right mind would take this position. If he could sway people to his side, then perhaps he could impress potential clients. Who knows, perhaps he felt that Helen got an unfair shake out of the whole getting kidnapped and then starting a war thing. But something tells me it was more than defending Helen's honor.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone here, I feel as if Gorgias used this speech to showcase his talents and ultimately demonstrate his strengths. I also agree Helen was not truly the center of what Gorgias was trying to illustrate, he used this foundation as a spring board for his goals.
ReplyDeleteI agree on almost every level - He was definately using the scenario to show that no matter what the reason may be "I can weasel you out of it" as if he was her - or any - lawyer.
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