Meaning:
A reference to the mythological figure Helen of Troy (or some would say, to
Aphrodite). Her abduction by Paris was said to be the reason for a fleet of a
thousand ships to be launched into battle, initiating the Trojan Wars.
Background:
Christopher Marlowe, in Doctor Faustus (variously dated between 1590 and
1604), referring to Helen of Troy, or as Marlowe had it `Helen of Greece':
Was this the face that launch'd a thousand ships
And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?
Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss.
- www.phrases.org.uk [edited]
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Yes. Cherchez la femme.
Instead of the humdrum folly, greed, vanity, etc., blame it on a woman and
you've got the idea for a good story. It's hard to imagine a movie about Troy
without Helen, Briseis, and Andromache.
