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Book No. – 48 (History)
Book Name – Western Civilisation: Their History and Their Culture (Edward Mcnall)
What’s Inside the Chapter? (After Subscription)
1. THE GREEK DARK AGES
2. THE EVOLUTION OF THE CITY-STATES
3. THE ARMED CAMP OF SPARTA
4. THE ATHENIAN TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY
5. GREEK THOUGHT AND CULTURE
6. THE MEANING OF GREEK ART
7. ATHENIAN LIFE IN THE GOLDEN AGE
8. THE GREEK ACHIEVEMENT AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE FOR US
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LANGUAGE
Greek Civilisation
Chapter – 5
Table of Contents
Pericles’ Funeral Oration highlights the ideals of Athens:
- Beauty without extravagance and wisdom without weakness or lack of will.
- Wealth is seen as a tool for public service, not for private display.
- Poverty is not a disgrace, but not attempting to overcome it is.
- A person should be concerned with both public and private affairs; those who don’t participate in politics are regarded as useless.
Aristotle’s view on the best life for humans:
- The life according to reason is the most joyful and fulfilling for man.
- Reason is what defines humanity and brings the most joy.
The Greek or Hellenic culture exemplifies the spirit of Western society:
- The Greeks had the strongest devotion to liberty and belief in the nobility of human achievement.
- They glorified humanity as the most important creation in the universe.
- Refused to submit to priests or despots.
- Their attitude was secular and rationalistic, exalting the spirit of free inquiry.
- Knowledge was supreme over faith, and they advanced to the highest stage of ancient civilization.
THE GREEK DARK AGES
- The fall of the Mycenaean civilization led to the Dark Ages in Greek history (1150-800 B.C.).
- Written records largely disappeared, and culture became simpler.
- Some decorated pottery and metal objects appeared toward the end of the period, but the era is largely characterized as a “long night.”
- Intellectual accomplishment was limited to ballads and short epics sung by bards.
- The Iliad and the Odyssey were later compiled into a great epic cycle in the 8th century B.C.
- Political institutions were primitive, with each community being independent.
- Basileus (ruler) was like a tribal leader, having limited authority, and performed military and priestly functions.
- Justice was mainly settled by custom and often privately, with the ruler acting as an arbitrator.
- The Greeks had no strong political consciousness; government was not considered essential.
- Social and economic life was simple, with no rigid class stratification.
- Manual labor was not degrading, and there were no idle rich.
- There were dependent laborers, including slaves, who were primarily women.
- Agriculture and herding were the primary occupations.
- There was minimal specialization in labor, with most households being self-sufficient.
- The Greeks had no word for merchant, as barter was the only exchange method.
- Greek religion was centered on explaining the physical world and ensuring practical benefits like good fortune and skill.
- Piety in Greek religion was not about faith or conduct, and there were no strict dogmas or commandments.
- Greek gods were polytheistic and had human-like qualities and weaknesses.
- Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, and Athena were significant gods, but no deity was considered more important than the others.
- Gods were capable of both good and evil, and humans interacted with them on equal terms.
- After death, most Greeks believed in an existence in Hades, where shades or ghosts continued their earthly life.
- The Elysian Plain and Tartarus were mentioned, but these were not rewards or punishments for good or evil deeds.
- Worship involved sacrifice to please the gods, not to atone for sins.
- There were no elaborate rituals or priesthoods in early Greek religion.
- Greek temples were shrines, not places for communal worship or ceremonies.
- The Greek morality was focused on virtues like bravery, self-control, wisdom, and loyalty, with little concern for concepts of sin or spiritual salvation.
- The gods punished perjury, but otherwise, their actions were based on whims or gratitude.
- There was no concept of sin in the Christian sense.
- By the end of the Dark Ages, Greeks had developed social ideals based on optimism and individualism.
- They valued self-fulfillment, rejected mortification of the flesh, and embraced a humanist outlook.
- The Greeks did not view their gods with awe and avoided the notion of humans as depraved.