Baker, J. William, “Organized Greek Games”: Golden, M. Richard, The Social Dimension of Western Civilization, 1982, 58-66
In the article, “Organized Greek Games”, the author, William J. Baker’s goal was to educate on the difference between Olympic Games as they are today, compared to Olympic Games as they used to be in ancient Greece. In this article, William Baker also described to us, the relationship between the ancient Olympic Games, and Greek religion, what some of the Greek philosophers thought of the Olympic Games, and the role of athletics in general, in ancient Greek Society. William Baker’s article, “Organized Greek Games”, went along very well with his thesis statement; which was, “Virtually everyone knows that the modern
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(Article pp.58) This article relates to the subject matter of this western civilization history course because in this course we have discussed the roles that women have played in history, and in this article, William J. Baker educates us on the ancient Greek Olympic Games and how they were played; however, women were not allowed to participate in any of the games. This relates because earlier on in history, women barely had any rights at all. Often, there were many things that women were not allowed to participate in. Baker’s article could possibly refute public errors and misconceptions because some people may not know so much about the Olympic Games. Many people may not even know or realize where the Olympic Games were even started. Some people may also not know that the ancient Olympic Games were very much modified compared to the Olympic Games being held in our world today. Some may think that swimming, kayaking, and archery were games played in ancient Greece; however, they were in fact, not played at all as Olympic sports in ancient Greece. In this article, Baker’s writing style was very simple for the reader to comprehend. Since this article was mainly about the Olympic Games, and Greek religious traditions, more people may in fact be interested in reading this article; therefore, this article contributes to the overall education of the
The Olympic games originated in Athens in 776 B.C. The more popular modern day Olympic games began nearly 2300 years later in 1896. The games no longer represented a religious festival, but a sports competition instead. The games can be studied via multiple aspects such as political, social, and economic, but this paper will concentrate on the economic aspect of the games and more specifically, the macroeconomic impacts the games possess.
Miller’s purpose for writing the book Ancient Greek Athletics is to teach the audience about ancient Greek Games and how this important subject can teach us more about our own world. He accomplishes this goal by using the artifacts he has studied along with the history itself to guide the audience in their journey toward appreciating Greek heritage. In this book, Miller addresses the Olympic Games that began more than twenty-five hundred years ago. I learned many different things throughout this book including: the participants, all the different athletic
The Olympic Games of ancient Greece were very different than those we hold today. The games of ancient times were skewed to benefit the powerful and wealthy. Although any male who completed 10 months of prior training could compete in the games (8), it was likely that if an emperor was also competing that no matter the circumstance the emperor would
Loman, Pasi. "No women no war." greece and Rome, seacond series, Vol.51,No1 , 2004: 34-54.
In 776 B.C a new era began for athletes. The first olympic games were held in Olympia, Greece. “The ancient games were not only an expression and definition of common cultural values, but also an arena for intense competition between Greeks.” (Gold, silver, and bronze) The olympics were an important part of Ancient Greece culture because, it brought their civilization together, kept the greeks fit and ready for war, and the games were used to satisfy their gods.
Tony Percott’s The Naked Olympics created a vivid image of what Greek life used to be consumed by, specifically in times surrounding the Olympics. This book confirmed prior knowledge, as well as dive into greater detail about certain aspects of the Olympics, for example how athletes were treated. Several aspects written about were completely astounding, like the Greek obsession with the human body and physical fitness. All of this information has been explained by telling stories of Olympic athletes and Grecians, and how the events came to life. The Naked Olympics has provided more knowledge on certain topics and offered new concepts and ideas of ancient Greece to explore by recreating an Olympic experience in ancient Greece.
In the article “Organized Greek Games “, William J. Baker’s goal is to educate readers on the differences between the ancient Greek Olympic Games, and today’s modern Olympic Games. William Baker not only explains the physical aspects of the games , but the relationship between the Greek religion and the Olympic games as well. William Baker’s article follows his thesis well; which was, “Virtually everyone knows that the modern Olympics are patterned on the Olympic Games of ancient Greece, yet few people have more than a hazy understanding of the original Olympics”.(article,pp58) William Baker wrote the “Organized Greek Games” in chronological order. An example of Baker writing the article chronologically, is when William Baker describes the Greek game 's schedule, and the events that were planned for each day in order. “the duration of the festival was set at five days, with only two and a half days devoted to the games themselves. the first day was given to religious ceremonies.”(article,pp61) In the “Organized Greek Games” William Baker quotes Socrates,“the body must bear its part in whatever man; and in all the services required from the body, it is of the utmost importance to have it in the best possible condition.”(pp.65) Baker got the information from primary sources. Some other primary sources used in the article other than Socrates, are from Milo Crotan, Ancient Philosophers, and Plato. (article,pp.65,66)
Throughout this journey, many factors had an impact on the Olympics. Some of the factors that changed the modern day Olympics are women competitors, women’s suffrage, nationalism, wars, and economic conditions. An increase of women's rights was given, pride for the nations was shown, wars still occurred, and economies have flourished. The longer the Olympic Games have aged, the closer the world’s state is to Pierre’s
When it comes to personal privacy, private license plate scanners collect billions of personal records per year, which contribute to vast databases that can be used by law enforcement. In the article “Private License Plate Scanners Amassing Vast Databases Open to Highest Bidders,” RT, March 6th, 2014 has increased that they tenfold its plate scans since September 2010, and adds 70 million scans a month. Following that, the publication In These Times, a progressive activism journal out of Chicago, continuously in their article “who has a right to track you?” Corporations argue that they have a right to collect data. These alternative viewpoints are presented quite differently, however. This essay will be about, does corporation have a right
The Olympic games were an athletic competition help in Greece around every four years from 776 B.C.E. In 776 B.C.E, the first olympics were held in Athens where many competitors clashed during the sporting events. The olympics then stopped in 393 C.E. due to Theodosius I’s orders on stopping the olympic events. Later during 1896, the modern olympics began to take place. The olympics were different from the ancient olympics in that the competition was shaped due to social, political, and economic reasons.
Third, Greece valued competition and because of their desire for the perfect body and their intense passion for competition, they founded the Olympic Games. Modern day society continues to celebrate the Olympic Games, and the games still bring nations together, to converse and share ideas. Additionally, three things remain constant from the original Greek Olympic Games; they are held every four years; they have opening and closing ceremonies, and the winning athletes are still treated with abundant importance. (“The Ancient Olympics.”)
Stephen G. Miller, an expert Yale professor in the field of Ancient Greek athletics states that the Olympics were held “in honor of Zeus in the city of Olympia” (Miller). “The element of religion is evident in this historical event. Many people have heard of the concepts of the Greek Gods, but this level of religious involvement is interesting. These games were held “for four days every fourth summer”, a tradition that partially continues to this day (Miller). “Many festivals in ancient Greece were dedicated to the Gods” (Miller). In addition to the Olympic Games, there were also other athletic festivals which included the Pythian Games at Delphi, the Isthmian at Corinth, and the Nemean at Argos (Miller). However, the Olympics at Olympia were “the oldest and most prestigious of the four great ancient Greek athletic festivals.
While there are clear contrasts between the ancient and the modern Olympics there is still the respect for the athlete striving to perform at the highest level. Today, the Olympic Games are the world's largest carnival of athletic skill and competitive spirit. They are displays of nationalism, commerce, and politics. These important elements of the Olympics are not a modern invention, as the first Olympics was in 776 BC in Ancient Greece. After 1503 years, in 1896 the Olympic Games were recreated as what we know today. The Ancient Games were once dedicated to the Olympian God, Zeus Olympios and were staged on the ancient plains of Olympia, which is also how the word ‘Olympics’ originated from. The modern Olympics is the largest international sporting event, which feature both summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of respectable athletes from over 200 different nations compete against one another. There are clear contrast between the modern and ancient forms of the Olympic Games regarding uniforms, participants, religion, events, politics and the concept of amateurism. However both the Ancient Greeks and the people in the modern world still respect and admire the athletics achievements of the participants making the Olympics the most highly regarded contest in sport.
One exceptionally significant custom of the Greeks still observed today is the Olympics. These ancient games incorporated a concept of free athletic competition without bloodshed. If the Greeks
At first thought, it may be difficult to understand any possible connection between sports and politics. The New International Webster's Dictionary of the English Language defines politics as 'the science of government', and sports as 'a particular game or physical activity pursued for diversion'. On the surface the two concepts have very little in common, yet their connection can be traced to antiquity and the first organized sporting events. The first Olympic games took place in Greece in the ninth century, b.c.e. to worship the gods, win personal glory, and, most importantly, unite the Greek city-states. At that time, Greece was made up of many small, isolated communities which, as they flourished, sought to dominate the others.