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The Impact of Greek Culture

The general introduction

Ancient Greece usually refers to the period from 2000 BC to 146BC when the Romans conquered the country. During this period of time, ancient Greek culture dominated the lands around the northeastern Mediterranean Sea and gradually formed its own unique culture. As the representative of classical culture, Ancient Greek culture in the western world has occupied a very important position. Especially, its great achievements in politics, philosophy, Architecture and science have a significant influence on today’s world.

When we talk about the western culture, most of people easily think of the Greek culture. Though the Greek culture has existed for a long time about over 2000 years far from now, its influence is enormous enough for us to concentrate on it and have a deep understanding of it. Thousands of scholars who are curious about culture have studied in this area and can not help losing themselves in it. Today I would explain its influence on the world from the four parts (Greek myths, Greek Philosophy, Greek science, Greek politics).

The impact of Greek myths

The introduction of Greek myths

Actually, Greece successful cultural fields of myths and legends are closely related. Greek mythology is not only the earliest literature, and it is the earliest ideology. Greek mythology consists of two parts. One part is about the gods’ stories, such as where the gods come from, the gods’ daily activities and the origin of human beings. In the Greek mythology, the universe is a cosmos evolving from Chaos. Chaos and Gaea (the earth) generate everything that exists, including seas, mountains, monsters and gods. Then gods of succeeding generations are traced back to Gaea and her mating with her son Uranus (the sky). The main Greek gods were the twelve Olympians, Zeus, his wife Hera, Poseidon, Ares, Hermes, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Demeter, and Hades. Other important deities included Hebe, Helios, Dionysus, Persephone and Heracles. Zeus' parents were Cronus and Rhea who also were the parents of Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Hestia, and Demeter. Another part is about the heroes’ stories. For example, Achilles heel, the Twelve Labors of Hercules, Jason and so on. The Greek myths deal with the creation of the gods and the world, the struggle among the gods for supremacy and the triumph of Zeus, the love affairs and quarrels of the gods, and the effects of their adventures and powers on the mortal world, including their link with natural phenomena such as thunderstorms or the seasons and their connection with cultic sites or rituals. Among the great stories of Greek mythology and legend are those of the Trojan War, the voyage of Odysseus, Jason's search for the Golden Fleece, the exploits of Heracles, the adventures of Theseus, and the tragedy of Oedipus. These are known for most of person and have great influence on the later western literature and art. In today's world modern language, industry and arts all demonstrate the impact of Greek mythology.

The influence of Greek Mythology on Language

The Greek mythology is a big part of Greek culture. Although the stories came down over thousands of years, they have already come into the modern life. For example, the mythology usually has some special meanings in the ancient. So people and writers use them as a way to show their special meanings. And its great influence on the western literature is strong and long-term. After all, it is an origin of western culture.

Very few people speak ancient Greek on a regular basis, but Greek mythology has shaped English and other languages on many levels. A "Herculean task," for example, is one that requires great effort. This phrase comes from a myth about the Twelve Labors of Hercules. The drug morphine takes its name from the Greek God of Sleep, Morpheus. "Venereal disease" is a rather unflattering reference to Venus. The goddess of love fares better in the term "aphrodisiac", referring to any substance or circumstance that arouses sexual desire. To this day, an unpleasant woman may be called a "harpy" (a winged monster with a woman's torso and a bird's feet). Alternately, a handsome man is an "Adonis," the mortal man so beautiful that Aphrodite herself fell in love with him. We call computer viruses "Trojans," a rather unfair comparison with the Trojans, as we're actually referring to the

Greek-built Trojan horse, used by the Greeks to infiltrate Troy and end the Trojan War.

The impact of Greek mythology on the language isn't confined to individual words. Many expressions, proverbs and clichés are direct references to ancient Greek myths. For example, the expressions "caught between a rock and a hard place" and "between the Devil and the deep blue sea" both come from tales about sailors being caught between the monsters Scylla and Charybdis of Greek mythology.

Other common expressions demonstrate Greek mythology's impact on the language of other aspects. As for science, many constellations are named after characters or monsters from Greek myths, including Cassiopeia, Andromeda, Hercules and Gemini. All of the planets and most of the moons in the solar system are also named after Greek mythological characters, although the planets have been given Roman versions of the Greek names. Even our Earth was named after a Greek myth: Another name for our planet is "Gaea," the name of the Greek earth mother. In politics and law, it also borrowed from Greek mythology references, and this is most common in literary works. Many Western idioms originated in ancient Greece, so green mystery analogy problem; the sword of Damocles metaphor is very dangerous, and Cupid's arrow and so on. Here are some Greek words which have a profound extend in meaning widely used in modern society.Include:

?an Achilles heel (a single fatal vulnerability)

?having the Midas touch (everything turns to gold)

?lying in the arms of Morpheus (sleeping)

?opening Pandora's Box (unlocking a world of trouble)

?rich as Croesus (Croesus was known for his wealth)

?the face that launched a thousand ships (a woman worth going to war for).

The influence of Greek Mythology in the Western Culture

The Greek mythology has long-term effects in the history of Europe. Beginning from the Renaissance, it has attracted wide attention and strong interest. Some of the poets’ and writers’ works a re based on the stories in Greek mythology, s uch as Shakespeare’s tragedy Troilus and Cressida and long poems Venus and Adonis. Milton Ian’s Comas is not long, but it mentioned more than 30 Greek characters and stories. British and Am erican romantic poets in the 19th century give high praise to Greek mythology. Indomitable willpower, superhuman strength and persevering fighting against the nature of the ancients in Greek mythology all inspire the romantic poets and motivate them reverie. The romantic poetry gives the old myths a new life. Longfellow, Shelley and Byron generate some works to eulogize Prometheus who steals fire for human beings. Prometheus was described to a man who represents the spirit of perseverance and strength by Byron.

Greek mythology's impact on western societies is often seen in the arts and popular culture. In the 1980s, the all-female rock band The Bangles had a top ten hit with the single Venus. Television shows and movies, such as Disney's Hercules, have also reintroduced mythological figures to new generations, including characters such as Hades, the Lord of the Underworld. In fact, movies have been retelling versions of Hercules story since the 1950s.Some of the most famous works of art and literature demonstrate the impact of Greek mythology on western culture. Botticelli's The Birth of Venus is one of the world's most recognizable paintings. Operas often delve into Greek mythology, as well. Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld is one of the most famous examples. Great writers such as Dante, Shakespeare and Milton make frequent references to Greek mythology, so much so that an understanding of Greek myths is necessary to truly appreciate their works. American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne's Tangle wood Tales is a collection of rewritten Greek myths.

Despite our sometimes questionable uses of Greek mythology in contemporary culture, its impact on modern societies is significant.

The impact of Greek Philosophy

The three important people in the Greek Philosophy

When we talk about the Greek Philosophy, three important people will easily be key point of the Greek Philosophy that is Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. At that time, Greeks were very interested in ethical and moral

behavior. The Athenian thinkers Socrates also tended to discuss morality. He claimed he knew nothing-he just brought knowledge out of others; he was a “midwife to knowledge”. Yet in spite of teaching “nothing”, he is regarded as one of the most influential teachers in western history. His influence rests on his way of teaching. Socrates spent his time in the open square of Athens asking questions. He was well-known for his good nature, his self-control, his courage in war, and his questioning mind.

Plato is the great pupil of Socrates. During the Peloponnesian War, the young aristocrat Plato, immediately escaped from Athens and travelled for about ten years throughout the Mediterranean, where he was certainly influence by the Pythagorians. When he returned he found a school called the Academy, which was the first to have that name, and which lasted for almost 1000years until closed by a Christian Roman emperor in 529AD. Plato was also interested in the following questions. Plato thinks there are two worlds- the world we see and the world of Forms (in the mind). Knowledge of Forms is innate; they are abstract and we know them through our souls, through intuition. Every object we see copies a Form. In the terms of knowledge, he thinks all learning of things is recollection. If we did not know them already, how would we recognize them? And he believed that the supreme human purpose was to see and understand the Form of the Good, which is perfect and unchanging. In his idea, no one does wrong on purpose; we do wrong through ignorance.

Aristotle was in fact very much more than a philosopher. He was a pupil of Plato’s from 367BC, a teacher at the Academy, and later was tutor to the young prince Alexander of Macedon. His range of studies included rhetoric, ethics, logic, astronomy, biology, physics, politics, poetry and drama, meteorology, psychology, theology, economics, town planning- the list is endless. He is credited with having written over 400 books. Aristotle was not an idealist philosopher like Plato, but an empiricist. His approach was practical and systematic. He rejected Plato’s theory of Forms, and believed that our senses gave us knowledge. By using our senses we are able to define thing in a systematic way, using ten separate categories. These categories specify name, quantity, quality, relativity to other things, location, position, time, having certain features, acting upon other things, and being acted on. He showed people how to think in a disciplined way, inventing deductive logic.

Their influence towards the progress of society

Greece is thought to be the birthplace of Western philosophy. Modern universities still study such Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. It was the works of the Greek philosophers that laid the foundation for their contributions in math, science, medicine, law and politics.

Plato’s deep influence is found throughout the cultural history of the west, giving structure to thought and lending support to authoritarian regimes and authoritarian thinking. Early Christianity used his thinking in support of ideas about the soul and the body, the nature of reality, intuition (which was called “revelation”), perfectibility, and the authoritarian unchanging state. His ideas have been influential right up to today.

As for Aristotle, his systematic categorization and analytical methods had a profound influence on western thought and scientific method. He showed that by examining many examples of one class of things, it was possible to understand their nature, and this was the method he applied to every part of his vast studies. His greatest influence was in bringing a rational, analytical method to the west through the works that came to Europe from the Arabs. He established the beginning of scientific method by stressing observation, logical procedure and classification. He influenced medieval learning with reason, logic and classification, the early Renaissance and the Enlightenment by his science, seventeenth century studies of plant life, seventeenth century theatre by his theories of drama, nineteenth century German philosophers by his empiricism, and today there is particular interest in his moral philosophy.

The Ancient Greek philosophy focused on the role of reason and inquiry. In many ways, it had an important influence on modern philosophy, as well as modern science. Clear unbroken lines of influence lead from ancient Greek and Hellenistic philosophers, to medieval Muslim philosophers and Islamic scientists, to the European Renaissance and Enlightenment, to the secular sciences of the modern day.

The impact of Greek science

The influence of mathematics towards the world

The Ancient Greeks especially contributed many things to the scientific world in many fields. First I want to introduce the Greek mathematics. The discoveries of several Greek mathematicians, including Euclid, Archimedes and Apollonius, are still used in mathematical teaching today.

The first mathematician of the period was Euclid of Alexandria, who compiled the Elements, which became the standard work on number and geometry for over 2000 years until non-Euclidian geometry was added in the late nineteenth century. His twelve books cover plane geometry, setting out several axioms and proofs and dealing with properties of circles and polygons. His impact on the Arabs was profound. They translated, commented on and developed his work, which came to Europe from Arab Spain after 110AD. His book was fundamental to the work of Kepler, whom it inspired to work on the paths of the planets.

Archimedes of Syracuse was a mathematician, scientist and technologist. He realized how to use multiple pulley systems and calculated the mathematics of how a lever worked, telling the king of Syracuse that if he “was given a lever long enough he could move the world”. His great machines, such as the catapult, were used to defend his city, terrifying the invading Romans. He is said to have set fire to their ships at a great distance by using the power of the sun and mirrors.

Apollonius of Perga was known as the “Great Geometer”. His books on conic sections are among the greatest scientific works of the ancient world. Seven of his books survive, which were among those that came to Europe from Arab Spain and, again, had a great influence in the west.

Ancient Greece mathematics contributed many important developments to the field of mathematics, including the basic rules of geometry, the idea of formal mathematical proof, and discoveries in number theory, mathematical analysis, applied mathematics, and approached close to establishing the integral calculus.

The influence of Astronomy towards the world

In astronomy there were advances, much of which knowledge was later lost for centuries. Achievements included the perception that the earth, Mercury and Venus moved round the sun, and that the earth rotated on its own axis; the diameter of the sun was measured, and the circumference of the earth was calculated to within an astonishing 200 miles; 850 stars were catalogued and the length of the lunar month was calculated to within one second. The timing of eclipses was also calculated.

The Greeks developed astronomy, which they treated as a branch of mathematics, to a highly sophisticated level. The first geometrical, three-dimensional models to explain the apparent motion of the planets were developed in the 4th century BC. In the 3rd century BC Aristarchus of Samos was the first to suggest a heliocentric system, although only fragmentary descriptions of his idea survive. Eratosthenes, using the angles of shadows created at widely-separated regions, estimated the circumference of the Earth with great accuracy. In the 2nd century BC Hipparchus of Nicea made a number of contributions, including the first measurement of precession and the compilation of the first star catalog in which he proposed the modern system of apparent magnitudes.

The Antikythera mechanism, a device for calculating the movements of planets, dates from about 80 B.C., and was the first ancestor of the astronomical computer. It was discovered in an ancient shipwreck off the Greek island of Antikythera, between Kythera and Crete. The device became famous for its use of a differential gear, previously believed to have been invented in the 16th century, and the miniaturization and complexity of its parts, comparable to a clock made in the 18th century. The original mechanism is displayed in the Bronze collection of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, accompanied by a replica.

The influence of medicine towards the world

The ancient Greeks also made important discoveries in the medical field. Hippocrates was a physician of the Classical period, and is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine. He is referred to as the "father of medicine" in recognition of his lasting contributions to the field as the founder of the Hippocratic School of medicine. This intellectual school revolutionized medicine in ancient Greece, establishing it as a discipline distinct from other fields that it had traditionally been associated with, thus making medicine a

profession

The impact of Greek politics

Greece, especially Athens, is the cradle of democracy in the western civilization. It’s obvious that many western na tions’ political system is pro foundly influenced by the ideas from the ancient Greece.

The Political structure

Ancient Greece consisted of several hundred more-or-less independent city states. This was a situation unlike that in most other contemporary societies, which were either tribal, or kingdoms ruling over relatively large territories. Undoubtedly the geography of Greece—divided and sub-divided by hills, mountains and rivers—contributed to the fragmentary nature of ancient Greece. On the one hand, the ancient Greeks had no doubt that they were 'one people'; they had the same religion, same basic culture, and same language. Furthermore, the Greeks were very aware of their tribal origins; Herodotus was able to extensively categories the city-states by tribe. Yet, although these higher-level relationships existed, they seem to have rarely had a major role in Greek politics. The independence of the poleis was fiercely defended; unification was something rarely contemplated by the ancient Greeks. Even when, during the second Persian invasion of Greece, a group of city-states allied themselves to defend Greece, the vast majority of poleis remained neutral, and after the Persian defeat, the allies quickly returned to infighting.

Only free, land owning, native-born men could be citizens entitled to the full protection of the law in a city-state (later Pericles introduced exceptions to the native-born restriction). In most city-states, unlike Rome, social prominence did not allow special rights. Sometimes families controlled public religious functions, but this ordinarily did not give any extra power in the government. In Athens, the population was divided into four social classes based on wealth. People could change classes if they made more money. In Sparta, all male citizens were given the title of equal if they finished their education.

The major peculiarities of the ancient Greek political system were, firstly, its fragmentary nature, and that this does not particularly seem to have tribal origin; and secondly the particular focus on urban centers within otherwise tiny states. The peculiarities of the Greek system are further evidenced by the colonies that they set up throughout the Mediterranean Sea, which, though they might count a certain Greek polis as their 'mother' (and remain sympathetic to her), were completely independent of the founding city.

Inevitably smaller poleis might be dominated by larger neighbors, but conquest or direct rule by another city state appears to have been quite rare. Instead the poleis grouped themselves into leagues, membership of which was in a constant state of flux. Later in the Classical period, the leagues would become fewer and larger, be dominated by one city (particularly Athens, Sparta and Thebes); and often poleis would be compelled to join under threat of war (or as part of a peace treaty). Even after Philip II of Macedon 'conquered' the heartlands of ancient Greece, he did not attempt to annex the territory, or unify it into a new province, but simply compelled most of the poleis to join his own Corinthian League.

Government and law

Initially many Greek city states seem to have been petty kingdoms; there was often a city official carrying some residual, ceremonial functions of the king. However, by the Archaic period and the first historical consciousness, most had already become aristocratic oligarchies. It is unclear exactly how this change occurred. For instance, in Athens, the kingship had been reduced to a hereditary, life-long chief magistracy (archon) by c. 1050 BC; by 753 BC this had become a decennial, elected archonship; and finally by 683 BC an annually elected archonship. Through each stage more power would have been transferred to the aristocracy as a whole, and away from a single individual.

Athens fell under a tyranny in the second half of the 6th century. When this tyranny was ended, the Athenians founded the world's first democracy as a radical solution to prevent the aristocracy regaining power. A citizens' assembly (the Ecclesia), for the discussion of city policy, had existed since the reforms of Draco in 621 BC; all citizens were permitted to attend after the reforms of Solon (early 6th century), but the poorest citizens

could not address the assembly or run for office. With the establishment of the democracy, the assembly became the de jure mechanism of government; all citizens had equal privileges in the assembly. However, non-citizens, such as foreigners living in Athens or slaves, had no political rights at all.

After the rise of the democracy in Athens, other city-states founded democracies. It gradually became a new and remarkable form of government, which had a significant influence on the western world.

The conclusion`

The Greek culture is rich and colorful, and there are still many things I haven’t mention like the art, sports and so on. We can say that the Greek culture is one of the main sources of the world civilization and it still sparks its unique brilliance in the world.