Question

What do you feel was the most impressive accomplishment of the early Greeks? How are Greek achievements remembered now? Does this match what you think the actual impact was on the Greeks themselves?

must be at least 200 words

Answer 1

Achievements:

1. Art (Pathenon, sculptures of Phidias, etc., source of inspiration for Roman and all sorts of sub. art)

The Greeks excelled in sculpture. Their works are impressive for their handling of human anatomy, and details like hair and clothing. They are also impressive for their handling of motion (cf. "Discobolos), and for capturing a wide range of human emotions and moods. Some sculptures are comic, others very serious. The Greeks sculptors could inspire patriotism and the love of liberty--and some of the subtleties of individual personality and character. Greek scupture inspired the Romans and (indirectly) the great sculptors of the Renaissance. One tribute to how much one could learn from such works came from Rodin, one of the finest sculptors of the 19th century. Asked his impression of a group of Greek sculptures he had not seen before, he simply said, "If only I could start over."

Also impressive: Greek architecture. The buildings on the Athenian acropolis are a great example. The Greeks figured out things like making a column bulge in just the right way so that it that it would *appear* more symetrical. The Greeks did a fine job creating buildings that would blend with the natural environment and take advantage of that environment. Greek theaters, for instance, took advantage of natural acoustic features to create theaters where actors could be heard loud and clear by all the thousands in attendance. Elements of Greek architecture have been copied again and again from Roman times onward--and we still see many elements of Greek architecture in at least some of our public buildings today.

2. Sports (Olympic games)

The Greeks also are important for the contribution to sports. We compete in "gymnasiums" and "stadiums" today--names that both come from Greek. There are lots of other echoes of the Greeks in our sports tradition of today. Some of our track and field events (e.g., the javelin and the discus) come out of Greek tradition. Events like the Marathon and the Decathalon have Greek names, though they weren't specific Greek events. Perhaps the best example of Greek influence on our sports tradition: the Olympic games.

3. Poetry

In poetery too, the Greek had a lasting influence. When we analyze poetry today, we use Greek words (iamb, dactyl, trochee, etc.). Why? Because the Greeks were the first to systematically analyze poetry. Here too Aristotle is a key figure. His "Poetics" is as influential in literary criticism as his "Politics" is in political science.

Not only did the Greeks give us better tools for anayzing poetry, they give us some of our finest poets. Among the greatest and most influential of epic poems are the two great poems of Homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey. The Odyssey is still much read in high school and college classes today, and the Homeric heroes are still portrayed in our movies. But Homer not only told exciting stories, he dealt with universal human themes. The Iliad, for instance, explores the theme of anger, and the destruction effect of hanging on to our anger. One sees the influence of Homer on many, many subequent writers--from Virgil and his Aeneid in the Roman World to James Joyce and his Ulysses in the 20th century.

The Greeks also excelled at lyric poetry. One example: SAPPHO. Sappho's poems were meant to be sung, and she apparently was the first person to use what we call the mixolydian mode. She may also have invented the plectrum, the pick. Unfortunately, most of her works have disappeared, but some of the finest poets in the Roman world (e.g., Catullus) immitated her work, and as a result, Sappho's indirect influence has been tremendous: many, many of the West's finest poets immitated the Roman poets who were immitating Sappho.