A huge proportion of the artworks included in this chapter depict war, victory, and defeat. They convey to the viewer glory and heroism – the glorious victories of the Greek over their enemies, and the heroic martyrdom of Greeks who die in battle, such as the “Dying Warriors” in the Temple of Aphaia. The viewer feels a sense of respect and awe at their achievement and sacrifice, but it is more respect for them as symbols of heroism rather than a empathetic connection to the characters as individuals. And, there seems to be an utter lack of empathy for the enemy – there is no attempt to see any perspective other than the Greek, so the enemies have only one dimension – that of being enemies. Their deaths have no gravity other than being an attribute
To begin with, Speaker 3 employs logos and pathos in his quest to argue in favor of sparing the Mytilenians. He begins by reminding the people of Athens that they are a merciful people and that every empire that has ever ruled with brute force has fallen. This is a perfect use of logos because it goes without saying that no empire, especially one with such a profound presence and reputation such as Athens, wants to play a leading hand in their own demise. So, it is implied that if they want to continue being a reputable empire, they must rule with grace, dignity, and most importantly, mercy. In addition to logos, Speaker 3 also explores pathos. Besides the feelings of the rebels who face the possibility of death, the Speaker argues in consideration of the soldiers who must commit the horrendous act. “They [the soldiers of Athens] will be emotionally scarred”. From this point of view, the audience is forced to consider mercy for the soldiers as well. What happens their mental psyche once they are forced to commit this act? Will they be able to go into battle with other enemies without having to deal with the guilt weighing heavy on their hearts of the people who were practically their brethren’s? Speaker 3 does an excellent job of getting the audience to consider mercy for the Mytilenians and the soldiers of Athens. A criticism that I have to offer to Speaker 3 is instead of just mentioning that there are alternate solutions to killing the rebels, actually giving the audience a few of those alternatives. This would have proven to be
The soldier’s lives should be remembered but not their deaths. The speech reminds Athenians what their ancestors have died for and mournful citizens should be proud they died defending the freedom of their country Athens. The oration also reminds Athenians of their greatness because of the fact that Athenian warriors have more to fight for. Athenian warriors are fighting not only for their country but also for their family, friends and other communities in the city. These warriors have more to lose because they are fighting for everyone in the city. During this time possessions were incredibly significant. Wars were usually about gaining land and having as much land as possible. Soldiers were not afraid of dying during combat and chose the most “honorable” course of action by fighting boldly and courageously. In this way, Athens was able to accomplish an enormous army and standard of living, without the harsh everyday training found in city-states.
Theodore Roosevelt one of the most famous and influential presidents in our modern day lives.
Undeniably, the ancient Greek society places a heavy emphasis on values and traditions. The two texts of the “Clouds” by Aristophanes and “History of the Peloponnesian war” by Thucydides, although contextually divergent, are actually conceptually convergent. Both texts are built around the central theme of the collapse of conventional values. While the breakdown of traditional values in the “History of the Peloponnesian war” is presented in a more metaphorical and symbolical manner, the downfall of conventional values in the “Clouds” is on a more direct basis. Although both texts essentially convey across the same solemn message that the relinquishment of
This paper will deal with the Perspective of War and how the certain aspects of war has forever changed the history and thought processes of civilizations worldwide. The paper will focus on the duty and action of war, the destruction and fear of war, and finally the memory of war.Investigating these ideas will give us a broader understand of how war has forever changed us as a society and how art is the perfect representation of this change.
When one scrawny, shaken Greek detainee appeared in town, the Greek Army already accomplished victory. As a result, the Trojans lost in a battle of empathy because they handed out condolences to one poor Greek prisoner, an accomplished liar, who told not a penny worth of truth. The Greek captive opened the gates of Troy during the night, allowing the Greek army in the great city of Troy. The empathetic Trojans, outmanned, reluctantly surrendered Troy to the Greeks because they fell for the lies of a Greek prisoner. Ultimately, the Trojans lost the war because they believed the tragic tales of one pitiful Greek detainee.
The French Revolution, the American Civil War, the constant civil conflicts in certain parts of Africa in recent history and even today; these are all historical clashes of countrymen. They all also contain stories of immense atrocities. The violence, bloodshed, and ruthlessness that were seen throughout these events were appalling. They were made perhaps even more so by the fact that theses horrors were inflicted upon one another by countrymen, brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers. The civil war or stasis at Corcyra during the Peloponnesian War was no different. This paper will detail the events surrounding the conflict and attempt to give scope to it as a mirror into the rest of the
Virgil’s The Aeneid is a Latin epic poem that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. The poem details the journey of Aeneas and his men after they are forced to flee burning Troy and as they wander the seas in search of land suitable to found a new Troy. Throughout the many books, the Trojans suffer through the Trojan War, the loss of their home, fierce storms, horrible monsters, and the wrath of the gods. A major theme of The Aeneid is human suffering as the characters in the poem experience the full front of despair and pain.
Both the Ancient Greek and the Byzantine Empires have a long and familiar history with warfare, acclimated to crushing losses and sweeping victories. In Greece, military action has fended off the Persian invaders and brought warring city-states deep-set rivalries. Within the Byzantine Empire, conquest has brought Rome back into the Roman Empire. Despite both civilizations’ high esteem in military conquest and glory, they had contrasting views of warfare and how their respective armies went to work. The Greek Classical Terracotta volute-krater, attributed to the Painter of the Woolly Satyr, illustrates two messy front line battles in separate registers. Meanwhile, from the Early Byzantine period, the silver Plate with the Battle of David and Goliath depicts not so much a battle between two armies, but rather a dramatic yet organized duel, over the course of 3 registers. From these two pieces, one could all but assume one statement: of the artists and commissioners of the terracotta volute-krater and the Plate with the Battle of David and Goliath, only those of the former have seen battle.
The artworks that I liked in this week’s readings were the Dying Warriors. There are two of them and they are part of the Sculpture from the West Pediment of the Temple of Aphaia, Aegina. There is something about these two warriors that really got my attention. I feel like maybe it is because I can really feel like they are in pain and agony, but they keep trying to survive and push themselves up even though they probably wouldn’t survive. One of them is supporting himself and trying to push himself up with one arm while the other arm is trying to take an arrow out of his chest. The other warrior is also trying to get himself up but in his face I can feel more struggle and pain than compared to the other warrior. If you look at the whole sculpture
On Achilles’ newly forged shield, created by Hepheastus, are ten scenes that represent the bigger picture of the Iliad. The shield depicts the heavens, the earth, two beautiful cities, a well tended field, the land of a king, a vineyard, a herd of cattle, a pasture, a dancing ground, and the strength of the river ocean. The heavens and earth represent the split between gods and mortal, while this is general it shows the two main sectors of the universe. The two beautiful cities, however, represent the Trojans and the Greeks, both beautiful but both surrounded by quarrel. One city with fights in the town over blood money the other preparing for an ambush which could represent the initial attack on the unsuspecting town fighting within itself.
The theme presented are politics, love, and war. These themes meant to convey expression of the Greek way of life and thinking. And these themes of drama emphasize on how the Greeks thought to a day-by-day basis. They are sung with a lyre to Greek individuals
It appears as sunrise and the rolling sounds of the sea mix with distant noises of men at camp. Here, the visitors are introduced to the Trojan War and the beginning of the Iliad. Visitors meet Achilles at the moment when he prays to his mother, sea nymph Thetis, to convince Zeus of his potential in war. This highlights the exhibition’s first hero as well as the theme “Honor.” Other examples of honor throughout European folklore are explored in this moment. This first section also introduces Odysseus, another hero who exhibits “Loyalty,” another theme discussed through examples of
represents the tangible and visible blossoming of Athenian imperial power, impaired by the damages of the
It is interesting to see you bring up how passionate the Athenian’s were in life and in art. I believe this is the reason we continue to study their work hundreds of years later. I agree the Athenian’s showed passion and displayed proud ego’s, we study this work and label it a Greek tragedy because of this. When speaking of gods or inner thoughts, we may see these and judge them as simple or silly, yet how will our civilization be judged on the snapshot thoughts and actions of the last few years. I believe passionate actions have dominated the news over the last few years, yet a lot of this passion is neither honorable nor with controlled emotions. For this reason many of our stories today will end up as American tragedies.