GREEK PHILOSOPHY,

ART, & LITERATURE

4.4

PHILOSOPHY Philosopher

Lover of wisdom Mathematics Music Logic Ethics Morality

Discover laws that governed the universe through reason and observation

Debated the best kind of government and how to rule human behavior

SOPHISTS & SOCRATES Sophists questioned accepted ideas

Success was more important than moral truth

Some thought this undermined Greek values

SocratesAthenianMost of what we know comes from his

student, PlatoSocratic Method

Spent time asking questions as a way to help others seek truth and self-knowledge

Seen as a threat to values and traditions, put on trial

Convicted of corrupting the youth and executed

PLATO Distrusted democracy Set up Academy

Taught and wrote about the importance of reason

Through rational thought people could discover unchanging ethical values, recognize perfect beauty, and learn how to best organize society

The Republic Ideal society

State should regulate life Workers, Soldiers, Philosophers Thought men surpassed women

ARISTOTLE Analyzed forms of government Favored rule by a strong and virtuous

leader The Golden Mean

Thought people should live a of moderation between extremes

Promoted reason as the guiding force for learning

LyceumStudy all branches of knowledge

Wrote aboutPolitics, ethics, logic, biology, literature, etc.

ARCHITECTURE Sought to convey a sense of perfect

balance to reflect the harmony and order of the universe

Parthenon

ART Early sculptors mimicked

Egyptian styles Rigid poses

450 BCE Greek sculptors developed a new styleEmphasized natural formsLifelike Idealistic

PaintingsOn pottery

LITERATURE Classical Style

Elegant and balanced forms of tradition Greek art

HomerEpic poems

Sappho Love and beauty

PindarAthletes

LITERATURE Drama

Early plays evolved out of religious festivals to honor Dionysus

Actors wore elaborate costumes and stylized masks

Chorus sang or chanted Based on popular myths and legends

TragediesTold the stories of human suffering that

usually ended in disasterSophocles, Aeschylus, Euripides

LITERATURE Comedy

Humorous plays that mocked people or customs

AristophanesSimilar approach as political cartoonists

today History

Herodotus The Father of History Went beyond listing names of ruler and retelling

ancient legendsHistorie – inquiry Interviewed people and chronicled events,

his own opinion heavily influenced his writings