Aréte is reaching the best of your abilities, the Greeks did it in ways like athletics and art and in modern society we do with things like architecture (Hooker).
The Ancient Greeks strived for Aréte in many different ways. One of the ways was athletics. Competitions were held at Delphi, Nemea, and Isthmia. Those were more of the big competitions. The more local competitions, like the Panathenaic games held in Athens. If you won a competition, you did not get a prize. instead you brought upon honor to yourself, your family, and the place you came from (even though only Greek were able to participate). Even though you did not get a prize, you could get a statue sculpted for you, or poems about you winning, also
Greek athletics were not really
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They trained for these competitions. This is an example of Aréte because they were trying to reach perfection and get to their full potential by winning these competitions.
Another example of Aréte in Ancient Greece is art. The Ancient Greeks did many things with art. A few examples are pottery and sculpting. They gifted little creations to Gods and Goddess, buried them with dead people and also gave them to their children to use as toys. They also used clay pots, jars and vases for almost everything. They used them kind of like cave paintings, they painted scenes on the pottery. Most things that we have learned about the Ancient Greeks have come from their clay creations that have lasted for a very long time.
The Ancient Greeks had many famous sculptures. People like Pheidias, Polykleitos, Praxiteles, Skopas and Lysippos are the people who figured out how to really make their sculptures of humans, really look like humans (History.com Staff). In the Archaic period, statues were never meant to look like certain individuals. They were meant to look like the ideal person with beauty, piety, honor or sacrifice. They were always young men, and never women. They were ranging from childhood to the teenage years of a young man. In the classical era, they used statutes in buildings, mostly to fill the triangular fields of the pediments. They did not always create them for that though. For example, the parthenon in Athens, a statue of the Goddess
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That is also an example of Aréte because they wanted to make their work come out that way and for them to be that way (Greek Art).
The Ancient Greeks were not the only people in the world who trying to have Aréte. People in the modern society have Aréte or strive for Aréte, and most of the time they don’t even know that, that was what they are doing.
An example of Aréte in our modern society is Architecture. The city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is known for their architecture. Dubai is home to the world's highest skyscrapers. One of the most famous buildings there is the Burj Khalifa. It is the tallest artificial structure in the world. It stands at a whopping 2,722 feet tall to the tip of the building. This building took six years to finish. There are tons of great examples of architecture in Dubai, the Burj Khalifa only being one of them.
Dubai is not the only place in our modern society that has great architecture and an example of Aréte. There are tons of places in the United States that have that. For an example, the Golden Gate Bridge. The Golden Gate Bridge is in San Francisco, California. The height of this bridge is 746 feet high, while the length is 8,980 feet long. The bridge was built by Michael M.
Throughout the history of Ancient Greece thousands of great works of art were produced. Works were created in many different media, ranging from life-size statues to larger than life architectural structures. One type of art that can sometimes be overlooked, though, is pottery. There are many examples of great Greek pottery, but the two that will be used as a sample are Artemis Slaying Actaeon and Woman and Maid. By considering the backgrounds of these works, and comparing them directly we are able get a taste not only of the artistic styles of the time, but also a taste of ancient Greek culture.
When we consider the questions of how we ought to live our lives, we often seek for some schematic that we can employ to help us categorize actions or qualities as good, bad, or indifferent. Such a means of organization would indeed make it easier to determine what the right thing to do is. Aristotle once attempted to formulate a similar plan. His ethics used a scheme by which characteristics could be measured and the right amount attained. Such an account is known as the doctrine of the mean. Aristotle’s doctrine is meant to illuminate the nature of eudaimonia, which can be briefly defined as succeeding or flourishing, the key to which is arête.
The Greek believed the human body was the measure of all things, therefore the artists created sculptures in a very detailed fashion which made them very life-like although the size of
The first Olympic Games were held in Greece in ancient times. They probably began in the sixth century B.C. The contests are held every four years in the summer. The first games lasted for only one day. There was only one contest. It was a short race. Only Greek men were allowed to run in the race. Women were not allowed to watch the games either, or to be anywhere near the gaming area. Other events were added later, swimming. But the ancient games were stopped in the fourth century, A.D., when Greece was ruled by Rome.
During the Archaic Age of Ancient Greece, circa 776-500 B.C.E., the population growth in Ancient Greece called a need for more food supplies, and this demand was met by trade, establishing colonies, and by warfare to seize more land (Making Europe 71). According to Kidner, the Archaic Age “brought a revival of culture, the economy, and political significance to Greece” (71). As Greece began to overpopulate, methods for dealing with the overpopulation had to be found, once of these methods was to import food, which caused an expansion of Greek commerce and production of trade goods (Making Europe 71). Another solution to the overpopulation of Greece was to find new land somewhere else, and during the colonization that lasted from 750-550 B.C.E., Greeks colonized coastal cities because they wanted access to trade routes across the sea (Making Europe 71). The revival of Greek trade also brought Near Eastern culture into Greece, including new styles or art. According to Kidner, “Greek sculpture assumed a very Egyptian look, and Greek pottery depicted many eastern designs…and Greek potters and sculptors soon used designs from their own myths and legents”
Modern Day Olympics are a huge tradition that sweeps the screens of televisions across the world. Competitors take the arena with uniforms that dawn their countries colors and designs that are meant to resemble their designated flag. For months the news is centered around the games; the preparation, the athletes, and of course the competition. Countries aren 't obsessed, they are inspired and full of pride seeing athletes from their country compete and show their incredible skill. This tradition dates back to ancient Greece where the games began. Tony Perrottet writes about the traditions of the ancient game in his book The Naked Olympics.
These athletes would not have trained in a public gymnasium, rather a private one with a trainer, probably a former professional athlete. The athlete does not work nor fight in war. More than likely became estranged with most of his fellow Greeks while growing up, except maybe other aristocrats and athletes. To the athlete, performance is vital to his self-worth. He knows his critics are right when they call him worthless to society. But, since he is the fastest runner or the best boxer, the masses love him. Until the day he loses the race or the match. He is humiliated. How could he go on when everyone in his city-state knows he is no longer the fastest or the strongest? Just like the story of the retired athlete Timanthes and his bow. Once he has lost his ability to draw the string back; he has lost his will to live. so he lit a fire and threw himself alive onto it. This sentiment was likelt shared with many athletes whose only purpose was to perform in front of crowds. Once they were out performed by the better man, they lost the only purpose they had in their community. Once the athlete is no longer a great runner or fighter, he has lost his place in front of the eyes of his fellow Greek men, thus has no longer any purpose within his society. To the athlete, sport is not democratic, it is
On a positive note, there are designers who have accomplished what seems like the impossible and created spaces that stand timeless in their place. The Eiffel Tower, Grand Central Station, Sydney Opera House are just a few examples of spaces that provide a unique experience for the people and contribute to the identity of the city.
One World Trade Center (WTC) is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere measuring up at 1776 feet tall. The built output sets new standards of design, construction, and prestige. Its beauty in New York City’s magical skyline makes it an icon. It is the most recognised and desirable office address in the world. In this essay I plan to argue that the social, political and economic status of society has affected the built output of this building considerably, for the good. Making the building one of the best skyscrapers in the world.
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)
where people are mostly spectators to be entertained. Architecture is an art that we see and use
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 Olympic games were limited to amateur athletes, younger athletes were not allowed to compete in the ancient ...
Even the few sculptor’s names known to us, usually by chance, from the imperial period are Greek names and seem to confirm the assumption that these artists’ work should be regarded simply as a late phase of Greek art” (Hanfmann, 12). The Greeks were the first western culture to figure out how to accurately depict the human form which they did through the use of geometric ratios. It is also widely accepted that it was even Greek artists who first made marble portraits for the Romans as the Romans originally had no skill with the stone. “It was certainly at first Greek artists who were entrusted by eminent Romans with the execution of portraits of themselves and of important personalities in the Roman state, just as it was Greeks who depicted Aemilius Paulus victory at Pydna and later were largely responsible for the portraits of the emperors” (Kahler 16). The Romans mainly used terracotta for their sculptures and it was only when Augustus reigned that the marble quarries at Carrara were opened and marble was used on a large scale. The Romans inherited the use of realistic proportions, the sense of movement (contrapposto), and the overall beauty of Greek sculptures. A great example of Roman sculpture that was clearly carved by a Greek artist who was familiar with the Hellenistic styles of Greece, is the Relief of the Wedding of Amphitrite and Neptune. It “shows a mythological
Another purpose of the building is that it is the world’s tallest building and demonstrates a living wonder. The location of the building is a pride to the people of the Middle East because it is the tallest free-standing structure in the middles east. The stunning work of art is visible to the world and incomparable work of engineering that build the Burj Khalifa.