1. Activator: Personal Connection  If you were offered the following three things, but could only select one, which would you pick? 1. Power 2. Victory 3. Most attractive man or woman  INSTRUCTIONS: Write a paragraph (5 to 7 sentences) explaining your response to the question above. In other words, state your selection and then fully explain the reasoning behind your choice.

2. Background story of

3. The Golden Apple  All of the gods were invited to the wedding of Thetis (goddess) and Peleus (mortal), except for Eris, the goddess of discord.  To get back at them, Eris tossed in a golden apple with the words “for the fairest” written on it.  Because the goddesses bickered about who deserved the apple, Prince Paris of Troy was forced to decide which goddess should be named the “fairest”: Hera, Aphrodite, or Athena.

4. The Gifts Promised Paris  Each of the goddesses bribed Paris to choose her with the following:  Hera offered power  Athena offered victory in battle  Aphrodite offered the most beautiful mortal woman

5. Helen of Troy  Paris was a bit of a lady’s man, so he chose Aphrodite.  Unfortunately, Helen (the most beautiful mortal woman) was already married to Menelaus, the king of Sparta.  Paris kidnapped Helen from Sparta and took her to Troy.  This action was a major insult to xenia—Greek hospitality.

6. The Trojan War  All of Greece joined together to go to war with Troy after Helen’s kidnapping.  The war lasted for 10 years, and resulted in the deaths of many, including great heroes like Achilles.  Odysseus’s conception of the Trojan Horse trick is what finally led to Greece’s victory over Troy.  The Odyssey is the tale about Odysseus’s journey home after the Trojan War.

7. Summarizer: Ticket Out the Door  INSTRUCTIONS: In order to summarize our learning for this lesson, respond to following Essential Question in paragraph form (5 to 7 sentences): How do poets Poe, Marlowe, and Doolittle draw on and transform the mythological character Helen of Troy in their poetry?