How Did Greek Culture Influence Western Civilization

Roman architecture was like nothing else in the ancient world. The Persians, Egyptians, Greek and Etruscans all had immense architecture. The grandeur of their buildings, though, was largely external. Buildings were built to be massive when viewed from the outside, their architects had to rely on building a post-and-lintel system, which means that they used two upright posts, like columns, with a horizontal block, which was also known as a lintel, was laid across the top. An example of the post-and-lintel system would be the ancient Greek Temple in Paestum, Italy.

The Greek civilization contributed greatly to the development of modern Western culture. Three of the most important contribution that are the foundations of our society are Language, Philosophy, and Government.

The Greek used plays to talk about moral and social issues. For example comedies were humorous and mocked or made fun of social issues, people, and custom. The plays were also shown outside. In document 6, there is an excerpt from the play Antigone by Sophocles. The play is considered to be a tragedy, which is a type of drama. Tragedies tell a story about suffering and usually end badly or in disaster. In the play Antigone overstepped Creon’s laws and buried her brother. In the excerpt from document 6 Antigone states, “Nor do I think your orders were so strong that you, a mortal man, could overrun the gods’ unwritten and unfailing laws..” This shows us how the gods’ were very important in Greek life. Antigone believed that Creon’s laws are his and not the gods’. Antigone also believed that Creon was just a mortal man and that she should obey her conscience. Today, we still incorporate our own values and what is important to us into plays. Therefore, this proves how the ancient Greeks have made many contributions in the areas of architecture,art and performing arts to the Western civilization.

The Western world was highly influenced by the ancient Greeks. The Greeks changed the way the world looks at art, math, architecture, philosophy, sports, and drama. Without the ancient Greeks, the modern world would not be the same. Men such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle changed the way we look at philosophy. The Athenians created the first known democracy, setting the stage for future governments. The Euclidian Theorem and the Pythagorean Theorem among others made mathematics easier and more developed. Even current architecture can be traced back to the Parthenon and other pieces of Greek architecture. The Olympics even started in ancient Greece, creating one of the finest traditions the world has ever known. Without the ancient

Greek and Roman architecture is truly amazing. They each had great ideas, and fabulous productions. It is said that the Pantheon is to Italy what the Parthenon is to Greece. Both are tremendous monuments that reek of culture and history. Each had a purpose which was displayed by the design and construction of each. There are such great meanings behind each of these architecural structures. The Romans and the Greeks alike worshipped and dedicated their structures and designs to the Gods and Goddess they believed in.

Both the Greeks and the Romans made a number of contributions to western culture in the field of architecture, many of which can still be seen to this very day. Architecture played a pivotal role in both the religion and daily life of ancient Greek society. The Greeks produced some of the world’s most enduring architectural monuments, many of which are still standing today. These include the Parthenon, the Temple of Zeus, and the Temple of Poseidon. Perhaps one of the largest contributions of the ancient Greeks to western civilization in regards to architecture was their development of the three fundamental architectural systems of design, the Doric, Iconic, and Corinthian orders. The following excerpt from an article

Due to Alexander’s great conquests into Egypt and Asia, money was plentiful for the Greeks and new cities had to be built and beautified. This is where we first see new cities being laid out on grids which were introduced by Hippodumus of Miletus in fifth century B.C. However this is just one accomplishment in architecture during the Hellenistic Age. One place we see a change from Classical Greece to Hellenistic is how architects began to move away from the balanced tension and idealism that we saw in the fifth century B.C. With this, they moved toward the sentimental, emotional and realistic mode of the fourth century B.C. One place where we see this is in the marble statue called the Laocoon (see pg. 89) which was carved in Rhodes in the second century B.C. and then later taken to

Much can be said about the Greeks and their contribution to Western Civilization greatly and how they paved the way. The Greeks subsidized Western Civilization greatly, contributing areas of architecture, government, and many more. The Greeks built the Parthenon, a temple dedicated the infamous goddess Athena, who they viewed as there patron. The famous temple has columns and groundwork that characterizes Greek architecture. The architects were concerned with conducting a sense of perfect balance to reflect cooperation and order in the universe. They were the first to think of the idea of democracy, a system in which people govern themselves rather than being ruled by a king; they also valued beauty and imagination.

Ancient Greeks made many influential contributions to western civilization such as in the areas of philosophy, art and architecture, math and science.

Stamper, The Architecture of Roman Temples, 106. Stamper, The Architecture of Roman Temples, 106. Stamper, The Architecture of Roman Temples, 106. Stamper, The Architecture of Roman Temples, 109 Frank Sear. Roman Architecture (London: BT Batsford Ltd, 1989), 59. Darryl A. Phillips, “The Temple of Divius Julius and the Restoration of Legislative Assemblies under Augustus”, Phoenix 65 (2011): 382 Stamper, The Architecture of Roman Temples, 130 Sear, Roman Architecture, 58 Sear,

The cultures and traditions of ancient Rome and Greece played a major role in influencing modern day western civilizations, particularly in the practices of art, literature, architecture, philosophy, and especially real-world politics. Today’s impressions on our government as a democratic republic were inspired heavily by both of these ancient yet fundamental governmental structures. Many of our values such as the inclusion of citizens in the electoral process, as well as a heavily monitored government, stem from both societies, including certain aspects of the judicial system. Our country’s founding fathers have all earned a traditional education. Following America’s independence, they began to formulate their own unique ideas about the new world, all the while learning, adopting, and implementing ancient Roman and Greek ideology. Upon the creation of the United States government, our forefathers included elements of Greek and Roman culture. The country of Greece was originally never a distinct nation in itself, as local cities formed individual political consensuses referred to as city-states. Each one was separated by tumultuous terrains of land and developed their own individual government. Corinth, one of the most powerful cities in Greece, was an oligarchy – a major city-state ruled by powerful political leaders. Some took part in a hybrid form of a republican government, such as Sparta, who at

The Romans adored Greek symmetry and the use of marble in building. Sooner or later, Rome's temples were made to be symmetrical; the use of marble in building grow in Rome. These styles helped build the Circus Maximus, and the colosseum. Although the Romans duplicated many Greek ideas, they still used different

It was built by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa in BC20 and was dedicated to his two sons Gaius Caesar and Lucius Caesar. The ancient building is located in Nimes, south of France, and was used for religious and political events. The front of the Roman temple is the feature of the building. With a deep portico with columns and a pronaos, meaning “before a temple”. The roof is triangular shaped and is supported by great pillars. Steps led up to the main doorway that leads into the cella. The cella is the main room that reflects the cult image of the god or goddess that the temple was dedicated to. There would have been a statue of the god inside the temple and an altar for a priest to make sacrifices. Behind the cella were rooms used by temple attendants for storage of equipment and offerings. Religious ceremonies took place outdoors but the processions would have either started at, visited, or ended with a temple. The temple is where a ritual object might be stored and brought out for use. The building of a temple by an emperor was a clear testament of his dedication to the traditional customs of Roman society. Ancient Roman temples are among the most visible archaeological remains of Roman culture, and are a significant source for Roman architecture. The temple dominated the forum of the Roman city, and formed part of a larger complex of adjoining

Ancient Greek architecture was very intricately made and well thought out. The Greeks used different methods and reasonings behind their architecture because they made sure that their pieces were exquisitely made to represent the things they thought were important. They valued their Gods and their worship of the Gods. It was important for them to always represent or have symbolic meaning behind all of their architectural designs. There are many hidden symbols that are involved in Greek architecture like trees, trophies, leaves, hair, and sacrifices to name a few. Greek architecture includes these hidden symbols to worship Gods, and to represent culture in their pieces.

Greek and Roman temples are very similar in structure, however they have their differences as well. Lets