Many paintings and poems have been created throughout history. Many of these may even depict the same scene. Two specific works a painting, Helen of Troy by Evelyn De Morgan, and a poem, The Description of Helen by Christopher Marlowe, in fact do this. Although the two works might be based off of the same event they have very seperate central themes. The themes may have been heavily influenced by the artist's or poet's past. In the painting, Helen of Troy, De Morgan uses the elegance to show that Helen is a very innocent person, yet at the same time in a way vain, while in the poem, The Description of Helen, Christopher Marlowe uses the same scene to show and make the reader think that many men felt lustfully toward Helen.
In the poem, The Description of Helen, the underlying theme is lust. The poem states, "Her lips suck forth my soul..."(Marlowe). This quote gives evidence that the theme is lust in the way it speaks to the reader. Marlowe describes how when kissing Helen it takes his soul away. Typically when one talks about having their soul taken it is out of a type of lust or love. The poem also states, "Here will I dwell, for heaven is in these lips,..." (Marlowe). Marlowe continues on about how he dwells in the memory of Helen's lips. From the reader's point of view, it seems Marlowe is quite obviously lusting after Helen. He continues over and over to state that Helen is grace and beauty. Helen seems to be the fairest and Marlowe recognizes this. In any case, it is quite obvious what Marlowes purpose of writing The Description of Helen is. His life may even had influenced his words used in the poem.
Christopher Marlowe was a very secretive and intelligent man. In one source it states, "The nature of Marlowe's service to England was not specified by the council but the letter sent to Cambridge has provoked abundant speculation." (Google) Christopher was thought to be a secret agent. His secrecy applies to his work. In the Description of Helen, Marlowe is very adamant on saying just how pleasing to the world Helen is. Why he is so stuck on going on and on about it is unclear. Another source says, "Christopher Marlowe was born in Canterbury around February 26, 1564. This was the day he was baptized." (Google) This means Marlowe did not have much of an option on the lifestyle he led, Helen does not have much of a choice on her life either. It seems that people just awed at her beauty and paid no mind to her other attributes. Maybe in a way Marlowe connected to this piece of literature. Another source states, "doubts were set to rest, or at least dismissed, when the Privy Council sent a letter declaring that he was now working 'on matters touching the benefit of the country,' and he was awarded his Masters degree." (Google) Marlowe's secrecy led him to be doubted by many. However, his works like The Description of Helen made him loved by many. Through the doubt and secrecy Marlowe made many great works and because of this his legacy lives on. However, his work on Helen can be compared to many others who touched on the topic of Helen.
One in particular would be Evelyn De Morgan's painting, Helen of Troy, which has a very distinctive and opposing theme of purity and vanity. In the painting Helen is holding a mirror that has what looks like her body molded onto the back of it. Helen seems to be looking longingly at herself in this mirror, almost in a vain way. The way she appears in the painting makes it seem as if Helen is obsessed with her appearance. The molded mirror and the longing stares are enough to convince any. Another thing quite prominent throughout the painting is the color white. When first glancing at the painting you might notice the white roses or the white doves. Also the light almost pastel colors and how they contrast against the deep, rough landscape around Helen. The color white is a universal sign of innocence and purity. The doves give a sense of calm and do the same work that the white roses do. The light colors and the wind blowing Helen's dress give the painting an almost airy, angelic feeling.
Throughout De Morgan's work one can see a gradual change, form rich colored paintings to more religious type paintings. In one source it says,"her style is distinctive in its rich use of colour, allegory and the dominance of female form."(Evelyn) This can tie into her life in the sense that she was a very opinionated woman. As she got married her works seem to gradually shift toward more religious topics. Another text states, "Her style then develops to engage with commercially successful style promoted by the Pre Raphaelites and her works take on more allegorical meanings or symbolic references to life, death and the entrapment of woman in a male patriarchal society, as seen in paintings such as The Gilded Cage and The Prisoner."(Evelyn) De Morgan's style was very almost in a way revolutionary. She seemed to be a type of feminist in certain aspects. The painting being analyzed, Helen of Troy, seems very religious because of its purity and vanity. Much like that of certain religious beings. Another source says, "spiritualizm was a popular strand of unorthodox belief form the mid-19th century originating, with seances, table turning, etc. through the control of a medium."(Longworth) Due to the fact that many of De Morgan's paintings dealt with spiritual things, such as the symbolic aspects of the painting. Like that of the color white seen in the roses and doves symbolizing Helen's innocence.
The painting, Helen of Troy, and the poem, The Description of Helen, have many different aspects that contribute to their theme. The painting's central two themes are vanity and innocence which is immediately different from the poem's theme which happens to be lust. Lust is a passionate desire for something. Marlowe clearly wrote in a person's point of view who was infatuated with Helen. De Morgan wanted to capture Helen's innocence and seemingly unnoticeable vanity. The two artists had completely different takes on the same event and this is shown through their work. In Helen of Troy, Helen seems almost calm and graceful. Helen is holding a mirror and looking almost in a way of obsessiveness at herself in the painting. Helen's innocence is prominent throughout the painting through the white roses and the white doves. (De Morgan) Paired with the light angelic colors, one could get a fairly flowy godly sense from the painting. However, Marlowe gives a very different feel to the same scene. In the poem it states, "Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss" (Marlowe) Marlowe clearly wants everyone to realize that Helen's kiss cold make anyone feel immortal and bigger than life itself. This feeling he is trying to portray is simply lust.
Evelyn De Morgan and Christopher Marlowe may depict the same scene of Helen, but their themes are completely different maybe even polar opposites in a way. However, both works can be very alike in many ways. These differences and similarities are clearly influenced by the artists themselves.
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:) english pre ap
Randommy progression of work throughout my freshman english pre ap class :) lmao.
