Ancient Greece:
The Greeks were fascinated by the study of the human body. This led to a term known as Humanism or “the measure of all things”. This philosophy is quite evident in Greek sculpture. They believed that the human body was a temple. Even their God’s and Deities were humanized. Unlike Gods and Goddesses of past civilizations, the Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Greece “differed from human beings only in that they were immortal.” (pg 85). If you look at the classical Greek philosophers, like Thales, Pericles, and Epicurus, you'll see that their philosophies were very humanist, promoting man as the measure of all things. They took a critical view on the beliefs in gods and the supernatural, and promoted rational thinking and the use
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Alexander quickly harnessed the forces that his father's (Phillip of Macedonia) reforms had made into the premier military power in the region. In 334 B.C., he led a grand army across the Hellespont in Asia. With some 43,000 infantry and 5,500 cavalry, it was the most formidable military expedition ever to leave Greece. The first to reach Asiatic soil, Alexander’s main objective was to not only conquer, but to spread the culture and philosophies of his Empire to every part of the Ancient world. Alexander's reign marked the beginning of a new era known as the Hellenistic Age because of the powerful influence that Greek culture had on other people. Without Alexander's ambition, Greek ideas and culture might well have remained confined to Greece. When Alexander died, his Empire was divided among his surviving Generals. Hellenistic culture had reached its peak. Many Hellenistic kingdoms however, emerged; Ptolemic Egypt, The Selucid Empire, the Greco-Bactrian kingdoms on where Afghanistan is now, and Indian states with Greek influences and many more. One example of Ancient Greece’s influence on other cultures (such as Rome) is The Stoa of Attalos, in Agora, Athens Greece, which is a restored colonnade that housed shops and civic offices. I believe it compares favorably to Hadrian’s Forum in Rome, which was used for similar
Alexander adopted Persian governing practices, but he had little use for Persian culture. According to his Greek biographer Plutarch, he considered himself "a governor from God and a reconciler of the world." He hoped that Greek culture would, through his actions, permeate all of Asia, inspiring its peoples to pursue virtue, excellence, and truth. This heroic idealism blended with practicality in his plan to develop the Tigris, Euphrates, and Indus rivers as commercial waterways linking all of Asia These undertakings promised to be long and difficult, however, and Alexander was an impatient man. His soldiers' unwillingness to proceed past the Indus was a great disappointment to him, for which he compensated by throwing his own festivals and celebrations. Alexander showed early leadership qualities. When King Phillip invaded Thrace, he left Alexander in charge of Macedonia at the age of 16. During his father's absence, one of the Thracian tribes, the Maedi, rebelled. Alexander was able to mobilize an army and put down the rebellion. In 336 B.C, Alexander's father was assassinated, putting Alexander on the throne at the age of 20. Shortly after this, Alexander left Macedonia with his armies to put down rebellions in the countries of Illyria, Thrace and Greece, all of which had previously been conquered by King Phillip. Alexander then moved his armies into Asia Minor and began to conquer the peoples there. Among the countries conquered by Alexander were Syria, Phoenicia and
Throughout its history, strong values have stood at the core of Greek culture. Ancient Greeks placed a focus on a balance of mind and body. Citizens were expected to adhere to three main Greek virtues; these being respect for the body, respect for the gods, and hospitality. At times, these virtues were not upheld, usually resulting in what they believed to be punishment from the gods. Examples of this can be seen in the epic, The Odyssey, authored by Homer. Throughout the poem, a repeated disregard for the ancient Greek values teaches readers a fundamental principle of life--consequences follow poor decisions.
The ancient Greeks did not contribute in religion so much as the Hebrews did, their contributions were more towards writings and art, great epic poems, and democracy. Some of the greatest philosophers came from Greece, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Homer, also Greek, wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey, two of the greatest works of all time, and also some of the more accurate records we have of life in that period of time. The government of Athens became the basis for many of the governments of society today. Their idea of a government run by the people was revolutionary and quite effective; their democracy was unique in its time. The Greeks also gave us the Phoenician writing system; they also had a polytheistic religion, sacrificing things to different Gods to gain the favor, respect or merely to please that particular God. The main contribution of the Greeks was their writings, and their philosophy to modern times. The Greeks also were responsible for building a library to hold some of their greatest works in Egypt, one of the first of its kind.
The culture of ancient Greece reflects the importance of the individual in society in many different ways. The Greeks used art, philosophy, and even their system of government to convey their beliefs in the importance of one single man in a society.
One thing Ancient Greece was known for was its religion. In Greece the religion was based mostly on myths (“Religion”). There was a god or goddess that represented a different role in the everyday life of a Greek citizen (“Religion”). Each deity was believed to provide and protect for the people of Greece (“Religion”). “To receive benefits from the gods, they had to offer prayers, sacrifices, and gifts” (“Religion”). Each citizen had to respect the areas where the gods and goddesses were believed to have lived (“Religion”). “Each city had their own patron god or goddess” (“Religion”). Also, each city had temples and altars for their patron god or goddess (“Religion”). “Religious festivals were an important part of the social life of ancient Greek cities” (“Religion”). To worship their deity people held public and private ceremonies for them (“Religion”). They’re 12 major gods and goddesses: Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Athena, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Hestia (“Religion”). Even though they are the most worshipped deities, the Greeks worshipped Prometheus, the god of civilization and technology (“Technology”).
The ancient Greeks practiced a religion that was in effect, a building block to many ensuing pagan religions. This religion revolved around their reverence to the gods. Essentially, the Greeks worshipped numerous gods, making their religion polytheistic. They believed that exercising the opportunity to choose between a wide array of gods to worship offered them a great sense of freedom that they treasured. After all, the Greeks were known for their intellectual distinction of which their means of worship played a huge part. Each city-state, or polis, thus had an affiliated god who protected and guided its residents. Within a given polis, the belief in common gods unified the people. Ultimately, the Greeks yearned for this unity and order in the universe, which is a characteristic that is not unlike that of people today. It might seem contradictory that they believed in many gods and sought organization at the same time, for larger numbers are inherently unstable. But, to the god-fearing Greeks, each god represented a different facet of life that together upheld an organized universe if each of these gods was properly appeased. To satisfy these gods, the Greeks participated in activities such as prayer and sacrifice and erected divine temples and centers for oracles in honor of specific gods. There is evidence of this institutionalization early on in the reign of the Olympian gods, thus forming the Olympian religion.
In the Ancient Greek world, religion was personal, direct, and present in all areas of life. With formal rituals of animal sacrifices and libations, myths to explain the origins of man kind and to give the gods a face, temples which dominated the landscape, city festivals and national sporting and arts tournaments, religion was never far from the minds of the Ancient Greeks. Whilst every individual had their own mindset on their personal religious beliefs, there were three factors that were fundamental in Greek religion; 1) the gods existed, 2) the could influence human affairs, and 3) the welcomed and responded greatly to acts of piety and worship. The Ancient Greek ritual of animal sacrifice gives a clear view into the everyday lives of Ancient Greeks and reveals both their social and cultural identity.
The people of Greece believed in mythology and believed they were blessed by the deity which inspired the artists’ creation of the spectacular sculptures including Athena Parthenos, the goddess of wisdom. Wisdom during this period was highly regarded. Most of the sculptures in Athens were made of different types of bronze. (See Figure 1.)
Mythology was very important to the men and women of ancient Greece. They worshipped the gods and goddesses, wrote poems about them, and based a great deal of art work off of them. The people of Greece looked to the gods and goddesses for help in all aspects of their lives; including health, agriculture, and war. Reading about Greek mythology can inform people about the society of Greece because the Greek gods were created by the people of Greece. Three main goddesses who were worshipped by the Greeks were Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite.
When looking back at many of the ancient civilizations, we can learn things about them based on documents written during that time periods and the events that took place. From these things, we can tell what they valued and the meaning behind these values. In Ancient Greece, many of their ideals are prominent in their practices, especially those performed during the earliest Olympic Games, which is something that Greece is known for. Many people know that the Games started here and that the gods were an influencing factor, but that is the extent of their knowledge. Little do they know, there were many sacrifices, rituals and praises to worship their gods during the Games. This shows a lot about their culture and how their values effect they
The primary focus of ancient Greek sculptures was that of the human body. Almost all Greek sculptures are of nude subjects. As the first society to focus on nude subjects, Greek sculptors attempted to "depict man in what they believed was the image of the gods and so would come to celebrate the body by striving for verisimilitude or true – likeness (realism and naturalism!)."(Riffert) Not only did the Greeks celebrate the human form in their art but also in everyday life. (Riffert) One of the favorite topics for sculptors was that of the athlete. In Greek culture athletes were described as "hero–athletes". (Riffert) This shows that athletes were revered and looked upon as heroes. The influence of athleticism is evident in many famous sculptures. I will attempt to show how the human form influenced Greek art. It is important to note that many of the Greek sculptures discussed do not exist in their original form but rather in Roman copies of the original bronze sculptures. (Riffert)
The concepts of the gods and fate were created to explain things. In Ancient Greece there was a lot that was not understood; science was in its infancy and everything that happened could be explained by the will of the gods or fate. The gods were the height of power; they supposedly existed since the beginning of time. They were immortal, omnipresent and omnipotent. However, the different gods had different personalities. In this sense they were anthropomorphic. Having such mastery of the world would enable them to control man's behavior, as is shown in King Oedipus.
...eir lives. Not only did the Greek gods and goddesses hold a major impact on the lives of the Greek people, but so did the spreading of the religion through architecture, poets and writings. Greek philosophers also comprised many ideologies that helped shape Greek thinking and the way people throughout ancient Greece would treat each other and their situations in life. All these religious beliefs and ideologies helped form the culture of the Greek people and explain things that wouldn't be able to be explained. The religion brought people together and helped spread tradition throughout the world. In ancient Greece, religion and ideologies were everything. They shaped culture, tradition, lifestyles, behavior, and decisions that people made in their daily lives. The religions helped for Greece to become unified and prosper throught their age of civilization.
The Daily Life of Ancient Greeks Life in Greece in ancient times will remind you of your own life in many ways. There were school, family, athletic competitions, and social gatherings. Knowing that participants in their sporting events competed nude or that you rarely knew your husband/wife until the wedding day does however, make you grateful for the society that you live in today. Babies Life for the Greeks in Athens began in their home. Babies were delivered by the women of the family, and only in cases of serious complications was a mid-wife called.
“The Greeks molded the mind of Western Civilization, if not the body and the culture” (PowerPoint #6). The Greeks had a very powerful impact on the entire world, making them a huge influence to Western culture. The Greeks showed their power over the world by their great intellect. Through their accomplishments in art, architecture, government, philosophy, education, and science they helped shape Western Civilization. They built strong and intricate buildings, allowing others to see throughout history the plan of the architecture used. The Greek government was one of the first to have a Democracy. Their ac...