This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

Did Helen of Troy have no choice in provoking the Trojan War? Is Falsehood more powerful than truth? Does anything exist, and if it does, can we say anything about it? These are the sort of controversies with which the Sophists of Ancient Greece scandalized their audiences. None did so as famously or successfully as Gorgias of Leontini. Plato devoted an entire dialogue to attacking his methods, and Aristotle praised and criticised him in his guidebook on Rhetoric. But he has had few books devoted to him. Until now. This reader contains all of Gorgias' extant works, including the "Encomium of Helen" plus a parody/tribute, "An Encomium of Gorgias" by editor Andrew J. Patrick.

The Encomium of Helen is thought to have been the demonstration piece of the Ancient Greek sophist, Presocratic philosopher and rhetorician, Gorgias. In this edition Malcolm MacDowell provides a useful introduction, the Greek text, his own English translation, and commentary.