Helen Was Never Abducted, Paris Abducted Her Because He Was Bored: Two Ways of Rewriting Homer In Dio Chrysostom (Orr. 11 And 20)

By comparing the rewriting of Homer in speeches 11 (Trojan) and 20 (On Retirement), this paper seeks to show that the manipulation of the epic past in Dio Chrysostom has often ideological and political intents. In or. 11, Dio says that Homer lies: Helen married Paris by mutual consent and the Trojans are the real winners of the Trojan war. In or. 20, he emphasizes that the same war started on Paris’ whim: his laziness caused the abduction of Helen. The two contrasting versions of the Judgement of Paris share a methodological perspective. Despite the difference in aims, circumstances of composition, and arguments, both Trojan and On Retirement use the Homeric encyclopaedia as a pretext to spread a civic message: the Imperial age was the historical moment when philosophers had to engage themselves in building long-lasting peace for their community.