Despite the assertions of certain scholars, there is little evidence of heteroeroticism in Archaic Greece. Meager references may perhaps be found in the Iliad. While the epic is famous for the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus and its role in turning the tide of the Trojan War, Helen and Paris, commonly interpreted by modern readers as friends, may provide a parallel to these famous lovers. Instrumental to Helen’s escape to Troy with Paris was Aphrodite, whose erotic connotations are well known from Sappho’s poetry. It could be argued, however shocking it may be to our modern sensibilities, that Paris and Helen’s love was of a similar nature. Nevertheless, other possible mentions of “straight” people (I use quotation marks as such an identity did not exist in Ancient Greece) remain debatable. There is no evidence that Hector and Andromache’s love was anything but platonic; the intimacy of their exchange in Book 6 should not be taken as heteroerotic, as declarations of strong affection between friends were common in ancient times. Neither is their marriage proof of institutionalised different-sex unions based on attraction. It is well known that most marriages were concluded for practical reasons, and romantic feelings rarely, if ever, entered the picture. As such, the question of whether “straight” people existed in Archaic Greece cannot be conclusively answered.
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