Pericles Funeral Oration Of The Peloponnesian War

Pericles, in his Funeral Oration, asserts that the greatness of Athens exceeds that of all other Greek city states because of their richer and more developed culture, their superior and more impressive military, and their more advanced government and society. Each of these reasons will be addressed individually with heavy reference to the funeral oration of Pericles, recorded by Thucydides in his book, The History of the Peloponnesian War. The Peloponnesian War was a war fought between the two Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta with assistance from their respective allies. The war was very well documented, with a large portion of our knowledge today coming from Thucydides, an Athenian Historian who also served as an Athenian general

during the war. Thucydides was well aware of humanity’s inclination to “accept all stories of ancient times in an uncritical way” (Thucydides, page 1, Section 20, lines 4-5), but he was resolute to create an account unencumbered by exaggerated or Romantic accounts of any events, but instead one purely factual and objective. Thucydides claimed that the evidence he used to construct his book was “better evidence than that of the poets, who exaggerate the importance of their themes, or of the prose chroniclers, who are less interested in telling the truth than in catching the attention of their public, whose authorities cannot be checked, and whose subject-matter, owing to the passage of time, is mostly lost in the unreliable steams of mythology.” Thucydides’s work may not have appealed taste of the immediate public, “but [it] was [instead] done to last forever” (Thucydides, page 2, Section 22, lines 24-26) as an unbiased and historical account of what actually occurred. In accordance with longstanding Athenian customs, there was to be a public funeral honoring the first soldiers to die in any war. During the funeral, a man chosen by the city for his intellectual gifts would perform a speech praising the dead. For the Peloponessian War, the man selected was Pericles, son of Xanthippus. In his oration, while Pericles did honor the dead, the speech was mainly focused on praising Athens. This speech was recorded in full by Thucydides in his History and it will be heavily referenced. Firstly, the greatness of Athens exceeds that of all other Greek city states because of their richer and more developed culture. While the culture of other city states was left barren and void as a result of their complete focus on the military, the Athenian culture was rich and diverse. The Athenians had a love of the arts and things of the mind, they were naturally respectful of authority and protective of the oppressed, and Athen’s citizens were in a position to enjoy all kinds of recreation after their work was over. Secondly, Athens had a more impressive military than her neighbors. The Athenian soldiers were naturally brave without the need for any grueling yet ineffective training regimes as the Spartans had instituted. Athens fought offensive wars alone and without any allies, as opposed to the Spartans who brought a host of allies with them when they invaded. Also, the Athenians relied on their own courage and bravery instead of military secrets and as a result the city of Athens was open to the world. Thirdly, Athens had a -more advanced government and society than their neighbors. The Athenians had free will and ownership over their own person without being forced to partake in any activity. The everyday citizen was well-informed on politics, and their opinion mattered. Finally, each solider’s desire for glory and desire to live up to the standards set by their ancestors instilled bravery and courage. Each one of these points will be explained and substantiated by evidence in the following paragraphs.
Athens had a richer and more developed culture than Sparta and the other city states.

While the culture of other city states was left barren and void as a result of their complete focus on the military, the Athenian culture was rich and diverse. Pericles makes note of this in his oration: “When our work is over, we are in a position to enjoy all kinds of recreation for our spirits. There are various kinds of contests and sacrifices regularly throughout the year; in our own homes we find a beauty and a good taste which delight us every day and which drive away our cares. Then the greatness of our city brings it about that all the good things from all over the world flow in to us” (Thucydides, page 146, Section 38, lines 1-7). Pericles was making note that Athens has infrastructure that allows its citizens to have recreation after their work was over, which drives away their cares. In addition to that, the sheer greatness of Athens naturally makes all good things from other parts of the world flow to it. Pericles also makes note of the Athenian’s obedience to laws and protection of the oppressed: “We give our obedience to those whom we put in positions of authority, and we obey the laws themselves, especially those which are for the protection of the oppressed, and those unwritten was which it is an acknowledged shame to break” (Thucydides, page 145, Section 37, lines 19-22). Pericles is stating that the Athenians are naturally obedient towards their elected officials, and

the laws that they make. In addition to this, Athenians especially obey laws which are for the protection of citizens who may be oppressed, and they even obey laws that, while they are not officially in place, they are accepted as a shame to break by the community as a whole. Athenian’s tendency to obey laws put in place for the protection of the oppressed is polar opposite to the Spartans. The Spartans subjugate poor farmers and force their rule over them. These serfs are consistently reminded of the Spartans power over them and they themselves are not allowed to organize or become powerful— in short, they are oppressed. Pericles makes note of the Athenian’s tolerance in their everyday life: “And, just as our political life is free and open, so is our day-to-day life in our relations with each other. We do not get into a state with our next-door neighbor if he enjoys himself in his own way, nor do we give him [black looks]. We are free and tolerant in our private lives” (Thucydides, page 145, Section 37, lines 11-16). Pericles here is highlight the fact that Athenians do not get into a state— in other words, they do not become annoyed or upset if their neighbor enjoys himself in a way that is different. Therefore, each citizen is free to pursue happiness in their own individual way without chance of scorn form others.
Athens also had a more impressive military than the other Greek city states.

Firstly, Athenians are truly brave without the need of grueling yet ineffective training regimes: “The Spartans, from their earliest boyhood, are submitted to the most laborious training in courage; we pass our lives without all these restrictions, and are just as ready to face the same dangers as they are” (Thucydides, page 146, Section 39, lines 7-11). Sparta’s harsh yet ineffective training shows how real courage can never be trained. Pericles agrees: “There are [advantages] in our way of meeting danger voluntarily, with an easy mind, instead of with a laborious training, with natural rather than state-induced courage. We do not have to spend our time practicing to meet sufferings which are still in the future; and when they are actually upon us we show ourselves just as brave as these others who are always in strict training” (Thucydides, page 146, Section 39, lines 22-29). Because the Athenians are willing to meet the same dangers that the Spartans are, this shows that the Spartan training is ultimately ineffective. Because of this, the citizens do not have to waste they own time constantly training and they have time to engage in the arts. In this way, Athens had a much more well-rounded culture, being focused on both military and the arts, as opposed to Sparta which was only focused on the arts. Pericles also stated: “when the Spartans invade our land, they do not by themselves, but bring

all their allies with them; whereas we, when we launch an attack abroad, do the job by ourselves, and, though fighting on foreign soil, do not often fail to defeat opponents who are fighting for their own hearths and homes. As a matter of fact none of our enemies has ever yet been confronted with our total strength, because we have to divide our attention between our navy and the many missions on which our troops are sent on land” (Thucydides, page 146, Section 39, lines 11-19). In that quotation, Pericles provided evidence to substantiate his claims that the Athenian military is superior despite their different training. While the Spartans bring a host of allies with them when they invade, the Athenians have no need to. The Athenians also rely on their own courage and bravery instead of military secrets: “Our city is open to the world, and we have no periodical deportations in order to prevent people observing or finding out secrets which might be of military advantage to the enemy. This is because we rely, not on secret weapons, but on our own real courage and loyalty” (Thucydides, page 146, Section 39, lines 11-17). Athen’s transparency is a result of their reliance on courage, which is in contrast to the city of Sparta, the city referenced in this quotation as the city that does rely on military secrets and periodical deportations.
Athens also had a more advanced government and society than her neighbors. Pericles notes that each Athenian has free will: “I declare that our city is an education to Greece, and I declare that in my opinion each single one of our citizens, in all the manifold aspects of life, is able to show himself the rightful lord and owner of his own person, and do this, moreover, with exceptional grace and exceptional versatility” (Thucydides, page 147, Section 41, lines 12-17). Pericles is basically claiming that each citizen of Athens has ownership over their own person and they aren’t forced or required to partake in any activity by the government. This is a very progressive idea for its time period, and it is this sort of innovative ideas which make Athens great. In addition to this, each Athenian is well-informed on general politics: “Here each individual is interested not only in his own affairs but in the affairs of the state as well: even those who are mostly occupied with their own business are extremely well-informed on general politics — this is a peculiarity of ours: we do not say that a man who takes no interest in politics is a man who minds his own business; we say that he has no business here at all” (Thucydides, page 147, Section 40, lines 6-11). Pericles is saying that each individual is interested in the affairs of the state and someone who takes no interest in politics is not welcome in Athens. This is actually good, as it means that every citizen is well aware of what the city is currently going through and because of that they become informed voters. These informed voters now can better elect officials because they have knowledge of correct and current information. Athens was also great because its glory motivated its citizens: “When you realize her greatness, then reflect that what made her great was men with a spirit of adventure, men who knew their duty, men who were ashamed to fall below a certain standard. If they ever failed in an enterprise, they made up their minds that at any rate the city should not find their courage lacking to her, and they gave to her the best contribution that they could. They gave her their lives, to her and to all of us, and for their own selves they won praises that never grow old, the most splendid of sepulchers — not the sepulcher in which their bodies are laid, but where their glory remains eternal in men’s minds, always there on the right occasion to stir others to speech or to action. For famous men have the whole earth as their memorial” (Thucydides, page 149, Section 43, lines 8-21). Pericles first asserts that the greatness of Athens is derived directly from its citizens: men with a spirit of adventure, men who knew their duty, and men who were ashamed to fall below a certain standard. The men were ashamed to fall below the standard set by their predecessors, and so they were motivated to keep above that standard. Basically, the glory of Athens motivated each individual to give her their best contribution. Later in the quotation, Pericles honors the dead for giving their lives courageously, and states that their glory remains eternal in men’s minds, something he calls the most splendid of sepulchers.
Pericles, in his Funeral Oration, asserts that the greatness of Athens exceeds that of all other Greek city states. The Athenian culture is rich and full compared to the barren Spartan culture, the Athenian military record is more impressive than the other city-states, and Athens has a far superior government and society.