Greek classical literature is considered to be the canon of literary writing that pertains to the ancient history of Greece. Greek literature displays the classic lifestyle, culture and beliefs of the Greek race during the early portions of mainstream ancient and classical European history. Prominent Greek writers such as Thucydides, Homer, and Aristophanes produced pieces that are regarded, up to this day, as af conveyer of Greek life in the context of classical Europe. Looking deeper into their respective works, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, Homer’s Iliad and Aristophanes’ Lysistrata all show a common theme in ancient Greek life –life in the context of war.
This paper will conduct textual analysis of each classic piece. The argument is that the concept of war functions as the prime mover of Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, Homer’s Iliad and Aristophanes’ Lysistrata. This study defines the concept of “prime mover” as the major plot of each literary work. With this, it will study the account of Thucydides as a participant and recorder of the Peloponnesian War. I will then compare the Peloponnesian narrative with the epic events of the Trojan War in Homer’s Iliad. Lastly, i will show the parallels of the developments in the Peloponnesian War with the Lysistrata and its author’s arguments of the female intervention in warfare with concern to the Iliad’s claim of man’s monopoly in war.
With concern to ancient Greek literature, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War is considered a relevant reference to the historical developments in Greece during those turbulent times. Thucydides, for one, is considered by many historians as a primary and earlier contributor in the developments of historiography...
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...ch literary piece. More importantly, the notion of war is taken into different views. Thucydides saw it as the venue for proper historiographical recording of past events and the overall perception of human nature as the source of such conflicts. Homer viewed it as literary venue for the epic tale of heroes, Greek divinities and the struggle of man to overcome the other in the field of warfare. Aristophanes, ultimately, regarded it as the venue for feminine intervention and the role of femininity in neutralizing the harmful and destructive side of man.
Works Cited
Aristophanes (trans. Jeffrey Henderson). Lysistrata. London: Oxford University Press, 1990.
Print.
Homer (trans. by Richmond Lattimore). The Iliad. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1951.
Print.
Thucydides (trans. by R. Warner). The History of the Peloponnesian War. New York: Penguin, 1972. Print.
The French Revolution, the American Civil War, the constant civil conflicts in certain parts of Africa in recent history and even today; these are all historical clashes of countrymen. They all also contain stories of immense atrocities. The violence, bloodshed, and ruthlessness that were seen throughout these events were appalling. They were made perhaps even more so by the fact that theses horrors were inflicted upon one another by countrymen, brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers. The civil war or stasis at Corcyra during the Peloponnesian War was no different. This paper will detail the events surrounding the conflict and attempt to give scope to it as a mirror into the rest of the conflict.
Goldwyn, Adam J. "A Literary History of the Trojan War from Antiquity to the Middle Ages." Order No. 3426747 City University of New York, 2010. Ann Arbor: ProQuest. Web. 13 ‘May 2014.
The book written by Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, contains two controversial debates between distinguished speakers of Athens. The two corresponding sides produce convincing arguments which can be taken as if produced as an honest opinion or out of self-interest. The two debates must be analyzed separately in order to conclude which one and which side was speaking out of honest opinion or self-interest, as well as which speakers are similar to each other in their approach to the situation.
Thucydides expresses how a combination of fear and greed escalates in the rhetoric of two opposing camps to divide a nation through his focus on personalities. As an example, Thucydides provides the case of the Athenians' ally Corcyra, when civil war broke out during the Peloponnesian War. This precedent acts as a model of foreshadowing for the Athenians between Nicias and Alcibiades, as they attempt to sway the crowd using negative and positive examples about whether they should go to war with Sicily.
Thucydides, Dent, J. M., & Dutton, E. P. (1910). The Peloponnesian War. London & New
The Peloponnesian War is the conflict between the pelopoponesians league led by Sparta and the Delian league, led by Athens. Much of our knowledge on the causes and events of the Peloponnesian War, depends on the Athenian Thucydides 460-400 BC, writer of the History of the Peloponessian War. He servd as an Athenian commander in Northern Greece during the early years of the war until the assembly exiled him as he lost an outpost to the enemy. During this exile, he was able to interview witnesses on both sides of the conflicted. Unlike Heredotus he concentrated on contemporary history and presented his account of the war in an annalistic framework that only occasionally diverts from chronological order. In his account, he discuses the precursors to the war, including the 30 years truce and revolutions, such as the stasis in Corcyra. When looking at wars, the primary focus is normally the fighting itself, such as what we see for World War II. However, it is important to look at the anatomy of war, meaning what effect the war has on the people who are experiencing it first hand, and the consquences that the conflict has on the rest of the world. Therefore in this essay I shall discuss, drawing directly from Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War, how the civilians reacted to the war, their involvement and socio economic factors. Furthermore, the first section of my essay shall focus on the direct effect of war on the people, regarding the plague, and violence and hopelessness that was experienced. Then I shall go on to discuss more general effects of the war and how it affected the Greek world, discussing the social and economic losses that occurred such as the cost of the war in attica, the coup d’etat that occurred in gove...
The text supports a means of judging character and extends it to cultural elements such as the gods who define the faith and belief of the people. Iliad upholds warlike deities, including Athena, for admiration among the modern civilization. In the ideal epic world, the comic is vital in creating relief as seen with the timidity of Artemis and Aphrodite. Moreover, fighting seems as a way of proving honor and integrity, while avoiding warfare is a demonstration for laziness and misaligned
In this essay, I am going to anaylise the Peloponnesian War. I will look at what appears to have caused the war, how it developed, and what the outcome of it was. As Thucydides is virtually the only surviving primary source of this event, I will also discuss the man and his method.
Homer’s Iliad has been a European myth for many millennia , the long poetic narrative written in the 8th century B.C. recounts a fearsome war fought over a beautiful woman. The reliability of Homers Iliad as a true historical document has been challenged for hundreds of years and only through archaeological studies can the truth be deciphered. The Iliad was written five centuries after the war, where the stories had been passed down through the oral tradition, therefore the type of society reflected within the poems resemble much more the time of Homer . The fact and fiction of the Iliad has been uncovered through archaeology. Archaeologist found a site in which they thought to have been ‘Troy’ destroyed by the powerful country of Mycenae in the late Bronze Age. They found large amount of material culture from where they could reconstruct the society, this included pottery, engravings, murals and clay tablets. A reason for the Trojan War has always inspired great controversy. The Trojan War according to Homer was fought over the abduction of a beautiful women but this theory appears improbable. Other causes which could have sparked a war is Troy’s geographical positioning. This made it extremely opulent, where other countries of the Aegean would trade there goods and use its harbour. The Mycenaean’s being an extremely imperial, violent and militaristic country would have seen Troy as a great opportunity to gain territory and wealth, on this motive the war took place.
Thucydides’ interpretation of Pericles’ Funeral Oration is a significant text of the Classical World, delivered by Pericles during 5th Century Greece and the Age of Pericles. It is intended as an account of the soldiers lost during the Peloponnesian War, however it is a statement that expresses the myth and ideals of Athens, all of which are relevant to 5th century Athens. It functions as a model for future societies and portrays the unique image and characteristics of Athens. Within the oration, Pericles emphasizes the subjects that forms the myth of Athens, one of which being that the Athenian government is a model for future democratic societies. Along with its government, Pericles highlights the unique and unmatched force of the Athenian military. In addition, Pericles continues to state that the development of the Athenian civilisation was a phenomenal achievement, far from needing Homer to immortalise the actions and nature of the society.
Homer, Iliad is the narration of the Trojan war. The Trojan war was one of the most important and significant wars of Greek mythology, Homer described how the war was triggered by the abduction of the most beautiful women known as Helen. This paper will argue how the traditional view of this poem is accurate because it indeed was Helens beauty and her selfishness that sparked the Trojan war. Although Helen was not happy about the outcomes of her mistakes. This paper will present how Helen faced many forms of self judgment, how she created many relationships with significant characters, such as Paris, Priam and Aphrodite. Homers portrayal of this significant women was remarkable as we were able to feel her pain and anguish, the readers were
The Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.) was a conflict between the Athenian Empire and the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta that resulted in the end of the Golden Age of Athens. The events of the war were catalogued by the ancient historian Thucydides in The History of the Peloponnesian War. Thucydides’ writings showed the ancient Greek belief that there is a parallel between the city-state and the character of its citizens; in order for the city-state to be successful, its citizens must be virtuous. Thucydides did not believe that the true cause of the Peloponnesian War were the immediate policies of the Athenian Empire against the city-states in the Peloponnesian League but rather the fundamental differences in the character of the two city-states
This epic poem by the ancient Greek poet Homer, recounts some of the significant events of the final weeks of the Trojan War and the Greek siege of the city of Troy. All of the places where Homer’s stories took place were in areas that had been significant in the Bronze Age of Ancient Greece. Excavations at Troy and Mycenae have revealed that affluent kingdoms did indeed exist there. The Iliad provides examples of the culture and traditions that took place in Ancient Greece. The warrior culture that is presented in The Iliad is based on honor and bravery, a good example of this is when Diomedes is trying to rally his fellow warriors in says, “I know only cowards depart from battle. A real warrior stands his ground. Whether he is hit or hits another.” This society was strongly against cowardice; bravery was the only option in these times. The Iliad preserves the Ancient Greek’s views on masculinity and what it meant to be a “real warrior” in their times. The evolution of what people consider honorable and brave is evident, for The Iliad has conserved past views that can be juxtaposed with more modern
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Peloponnesian War (ancient Greek History)."Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Dec. 2013. Web. 05 Apr. 2014
The causes of the Peloponnesian War proved to be too great between the tension-filled stubborn Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta. As Thucydides says in Karl Walling’s article, “Never had so many human beings been exiled, or so much human blood been shed” (4). The three phases of the war, which again, are the Archidamian war, the Sicilian Expedition and the Decelean war, show the events that followed the causes of the war, while also showing the forthcoming detrimental effects that eventually consumed both Athens and eventually Sparta effectively reshaping Greece.