Lyric poetry, shorter forms of poetry, began to replace the epic. Lyric poetry was originally sung to music of the lyre. Personal feelings were displayed in lyric poetry versus the acts of heroism displayed in epic poetry. One type of lyric poetry was called melic poetry. These poems are highly .
emotional. Melic poetry was composed for a single voice, unlike elegiac and iambic poetry. The poet usually sang the poem amongst close friends. Sappho who lived about 600 BC, was the most famous melic poet. Sappho's verse was so intense and passionate it is said that no other Greek love poetry has ever matched it. Other lyric poets composed choral lyrics. These were sung by groups and accompanied by dancing and music. Some important writers of choral lyrics were Alcman, Steischorus, and Simonides of Ceos.
Athens became the center of Greek culture during the late 500's BC. During the height of this period, from 461 to 431 BC, the arts, including literature, flourished. These years are referred to as the Golden Age. Drama, especially tragedy, became the most important literary form during the Golden Age. Three great tragic playwrights were Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. Aeschylus is noted for the seriousness, complexity of thought and majestic language. Euripides was called the "philosopher of the stage." .
His plays explore the psychological world of human passions and emotions. Sophocles is most famous for his characterization, graceful language, and sense of calm and proportion.
Comedy was also seen during the 400's BC. Aristophanes, who wrote plays in the style Old Comedy, was a great writer of comic plays. His plays reflected the spirit of Athens at that time. Their spirit was that of freedom, vitality and high spirits and their ability to laugh at themselves. Athens was defeated in the Peloponnesian War in 404 BC, and there was less freedom of speech. With its elements of political and social satire, government leaders no longer permitted Old Comedy.
The Greeks have had many large impacts on the western civilization. ... The Greeks did more than contribute to us politically. ... They also began decorating their coins. ... The Romans also used similar to the US Census. ... The Romans picked up where the Greeks left off, and made it their own. ...
Plays: Their Impact Yesterday and Today Plays: Their Impact Yesterday and Today One of the beauties of where we came from is that it gives us a look into where we are going. ... This is a classical situation where the individual can make large impacts on the society around them. In classical Greece the best example of this would be the struggles of Socrates. ... Most Greeks would laugh at the idea of women being sensible enough to organize anything more difficult than their hair. ... Which basically means that in ancient Greek times they would have thought women to make blunders in th...
The ancient Greeks had a huge impact on western civilization. ... To this day we see many of their practices still in us. ... Most of them inform us about the heroic deeds of mortals or divine beings. ... Both of these poems emphasized bravery and honor and had a huge impact on Greek education, culture and literature. ... It's hard to imagine the gift they have presented us by their uniqueness. ...
(Societies & culture in World history) The Ancient Greeks are known for four main art forms; their architectural forms mainly temples; sculptures; pottery & paintings. ... Their art work embodies much of what made the Greek civilization great. Few examples of Greek architecture or large sculpture have survived in their original, undamaged form but large Greek paintings are known. ... Their temples reflected their religious beliefs in the gods. ... (Western civilization) Aware of Egyptian temples in stone, the Greeks began to build their own stone temples in a distinctive style in the A...
The city-state brought people nourishment, wealth, defense and liberty; therefore, Athenians owed their city-state their allegiance. To do this, citizens had to use their freedom (or virtuous behavior) to positively impact Athens' laws and norms. ... Constant describes Greek liberty as precious because every citizen could impact the decision directly through his vote or opinion. ... Aristotle believed a person had to earn their citizenship from the government and was a servant to their society. ... Unlike Aristotle's model, modern cultures uphold that our governments exist to serve u...
Democracy, classical art and architecture, philosophy, and drama all can trace their lineage to ancient Greece. ... For instance, many of the Greek vases depicting women show them handing warriors their helmets as they prepare for battle, and so some scholars point to the passive role of women. Reading the plays of the classical playwrights give us evidence of women as strong, central characters in Greek tragedies and epics. ... Others cheer their feats. ... Homer's works became the Greek "bible", outlining for the Greeks their heroic past, and how they were to feel, think, and...
This civilization's culture had a great impact on the Hebrew religion. ... The code tells us a lot about the Mesopotamian society. ... Medieval Greek philosophers also made their mark upon Christianity. ... Greek philosophy influenced some of the writings that made an impact on the Christian religion. ... The Greek orders are: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian and they used them to build their huge temples. ...
The ancient Greek civilization ranged from 1900- 133 BC, however its impact on the Western world lasts to this day. As the Greeks expanded their empire, they spread their ideas to other countries, while also borrowing from other cultures. ... Socrates was a Greek philosopher who developed the Socratic method, which is a form of teaching that used a question and answer format to force pupils to see things for themselves by using their own reason. ... His contribution became an important part of Western civilization- a legacy that reminds us to think for ourselves and to stand up for what we bel...
Some of the earliest known philosophers, the pre-Socratics, have had a profound impact on how both the world and philosophy are viewed today. ... Their main question was, "What is the nature of reality?" ... Despite the scarcity of actual words, later Greeks who understood their great accomplishments respected these early philosophers. Also, these early philosophers wanted to know other aspects of life, such as how the world appears to us, and why it appears that way. ... Though not disgraceful in itself, the wise men of Greece had never accepted payment for their teaching. ...