"Helen" by H.D.

The Trojan War, whether fact or fiction, is a huge part of ancient Greek history and culture. The “cause” of this colossal war is the subject of H.D.’s poem, “Helen.” The title refers to Helen, wife of Menelaus, a great king of Greece. Helen falls in love with, and flees Greece with Paris, a prince of Troy, sparking the great, deadly event known as the Trojan War. In his poem, H.D. mainly focuses on describing the way the Greeks feel about Helen, most obviously their hatred towards her and the things she has done to cause such tragedy.
One of the main things I first noticed about the poem, and one that made the poem stick out to me and become very effective, was the author’s strategic use of repetition. The main key word that is constantly used and reused is “white.” It is always used to refer to Helen, and some part or parts of her body. In the first stanza, it is used twice. First the poet uses the word to describe her face with its still eyes and “white” complexion. Then in the final line of the stanza, Helen’s hands are referred to by this colorless word. In the second stanza, her face is once again described as “white,” only this time emotions are brought into play, and certain expressions she gets when she thinks of certain events. In the third and final stanza, The color is no longer used to refer to her skin color as a living, breathing being, but instead it is used in the final line of the poem to describe the ashes that would be left if Helen were burned on funeral cypresses. The fact that this word, meaning an absence of color, is one that is constantly brought up is effective in portraying this mood of emptiness that the Greek people feel towards her now. This great woman they once respected and loved is now essentially dead to them, and they would be happy if she actually were dead. Another word that is repeated and appears once in every stanza, on the very first line of each stanza, is “Greece.” I think this serves not only to reference the poem to its context (Helen’s involvement in the Trojan War), but also to enforce the sense of pride that these people had for their country, adding even more to the sense of hate evoked by something that almost destroyed it.
Another key structural component I noticed was the three separate stanzas. Each one to me sort of refers to this hatred the Greek people feel towards Helen in a different way. In the first stanza, we are introduced to this woman, and informed that all of Greece hates her. In the second stanza, the author provides us more information to allow us to explore a little further into this hatred. We see that when they see her face, and expressions meaning she is remembering part times, they hate “it deeper still.” In the third stanza we reach the climax of it all. We see the full extent of the hatred. These people will only be happy with her if she is dead.
There are lots of pretty images describing Helen throughout the poem. “Lustre as of olives,” and “beauty of cool feet, and slenderest knees” are a few examples. This beautiful imagery throughout the poem juxtaposes the hatred shared by the Greeks because we see that despite her unsurpassable charm and beauty, the people still wish she was dead for what she did to their homeland.
I really like this poem because of the way H.D. uses a very familiar story as a backdrop. He also uses great diction and language, vivid imagery, and many useful structural components to make this a very enjoyable and effective piece of literature to read.