Mythology/Helen of Troy
I have read the legend of the Trojan War, but Helen's feelings and roles have always felt ambiguous to me. Not even once, does she forcefully appeal to be released, or stop the war or make it clear as to who she wants to be with. Was she chaste or was she adulterous? To me she felt like a toy used by Zeus to end the race of heroes.
Also, why was Menelaus chosen to be her husband? He was hardly noteworthy.
Please answer my queries.
Helen's marriage was most likely a marriage of convenience. Her sister Clytemnestra was married to King Agamemenon who ruled the wealthy city of Mycenae. Her father, Tyndareus, had to receive an oath from her suitors to defend Helen's chosen husband, but the myth isn't clear if she chose Meneleus or if he was chosen for her, but it is clear that Helen fell in love with Paris and fled with him to Troy while Meneleus and Agamemenon were attending the funeral of their grandfather in Crete. Helen wanted asylum at Troy, but she still felt loyalty to the Greeks. During the discovery of the Wooden Horse, she even tries to rouse the discovery of the Greeks to the Trojans. From here, it seems she is given to self-preservation, always going for what is the best option for her. After Paris is killed, she marries his brother Deiphobus, and after his death, Menelaus is unable to kill her, pursuing her to Egypt where Hermes carries her off to test the strength of their love. Their marriage survives a bit longer until his death and she is driven from Sparta by her step-sons trying to seize the throne. Helen has no supporters, many of Menelaus's allies are still angry over the war. She is finally spirited away by Hermes one last time to help her escape her enemies. The alternate myth is she was buried next to Menelaus at Therapne, joining him in the Elysian Fields.
I hope this answers your questions. Let me know if I can help you any further!