The most important thing to remember about the Funeral Oration is that it is a speech, intended to persuade its listeners. Pericles praises Athens so that people will keep fighting; he praises the sacrifices of the dead so that others will imitate them.
Who is being honored in Pericles Funeral Oration?
An important text concerning Greek civilization – or, more specifically, Athenian civilization – is Pericles’ funeral oration, delivered in honor of the Athenians killed in the first year of fighting in the Peloponnesian War. Our source for Pericles’ oration is Thucydides, 2.35-46.
What did the Athenians say they did with their dead?
The Athenians are those who set the standard and, therefore, Demosthenes praises them, saying that “you alone of all mankind publicly pronounce over your dead funeral orations, in which you extol the deeds of the brave”. …
What did Spartans value most?
The Spartans valued discipline, obedience, and courage above all else. Spartan men learned these values at an early age, when they were trained to be soldiers. Spartan women were also expected to be strong, athletic, and disciplined.
Is it true that Sparta suffered from a plague during the war?
In 430 BC, a plague struck the city of Athens, which was then under siege by Sparta during the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC). In the next 3 years, most of the population was infected, and perhaps as many as 75,000 to 100,000 people, 25% of the city’s population, died.
What did Pericles do for democracy?
He started an ambitious project that generated most of the surviving structures on the Acropolis, including the Parthenon. This project beautified and protected the city, exhibited its glory and gave work to its people. Pericles also fostered Athenian democracy to such an extent that critics call him a populist.
What does the funeral oration say about democracy?
The Funeral Speech
Democracy allows men to advance because of merit rather than wealth or inherited class. In a democracy, citizens behave lawfully while doing what they like without fear of prying eyes. In a democracy, there is equal justice for all in private disputes.
Who killed Pericles?
One of the victims of the plague that swept Athens in 430 BC was Pericles himself. According to the historian Thucydides: ‘… The plague seized Pericles, not with sharp and violent fits, but with a dull lingering distemper, wasting the strength of his body and undermining his noble soul.
What was the biggest difference between government in ancient Athens and in ancient Rome?
What was the biggest difference between government in ancient Athens and in ancient Rome? Athens allowed all citizens to vote, while Rome was a republic. … Each city-state had its own form of government.
Who is the speaker in Funeral Oration?
In 431 BCE the Athenian statesman Pericles delivered one of the most influential speeches of all time, his Epitaphios or Funeral Oration. The occasion was at the funeral of the first Athenian soldiers to lose their lives in the Peloponnesian War.
What did the melians argue about at the Melian dialogue?
The Melians argue that they will have the assistance of the gods because their position is morally just. The Athenians counter that the gods will not intervene because it is the natural order of things for the strong to dominate the weak. The Melians argue that their Spartan kin will come to their defense.
How did ancient Athenians participate in political decisions?
Greek democracy created at Athens was direct, rather than representative: any adult male citizen over the age of 20 could take part, and it was a duty to do so. The officials of the democracy were in part elected by the Assembly and in large part chosen by lottery in a process called sortition.
Who ruled during the golden era of Athens?
The so-called golden age of Athenian culture flourished under the leadership of Pericles (495-429 B.C.), a brilliant general, orator, patron of the arts and politician—”the first citizen” of democratic Athens, according to the historian Thucydides.
What was the most important way in which the Greeks influenced American democracy?
The most important way in which the greeks influenced American democracy was by allowing citizens to participate in government. All members of society both rich and poor except for women were able to participate in government.
How does Pericles strengthen democracy?
To strengthen democracy, Pericles increased the number of public officials who were paid. Earlier in Athens, most positions were unpaid. This made it hard for less wealthy people to hold government jobs. Now even the poorest citizen could serve if elected.
What was Pericles greatest accomplishment?
Pericles’s most important accomplishment was making Athens a more democratic city-state by appointing people to positions based on their skill and abilities instead of their social class.
Who is the king of Sparta?
Leonidas, the king of Sparta
Leonidas (540-480 BC), the legendary king of Sparta, and the Battle of Thermopylae is one of the most brilliant events of the ancient Greek history, a great act of courage and self-sacrifice.
Did Athens beat Sparta?
Athens lost its dominance in the region to Sparta until both were conquered less than a century later and made part of the kingdom of Macedon.
How many people died from the plague?
It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causing the death of 75–200 million people in Eurasia and North Africa, peaking in Europe from 1347 to 1351. Bubonic plague is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, but it may also cause septicaemic or pneumonic plagues.
What did Sparta gain from the Peloponnesian War?
Sparta. As a result of the Peloponnesian War, Sparta, which had primarily been a continental culture, became a naval power. At its peak, Sparta overpowered many key Greek states, including the elite Athenian navy.
What is Sparta called today?
Sparta, also known as Lacedaemon, was an ancient Greek city-state located primarily in the present-day region of southern Greece called Laconia.
What was the greatest honor that could come to a Spartan?
In ancient Sparta strength was admired and weakness was despised. The greatest virtue was bravery and the greatest honor was to die fighting in battle. The most serious crime for a Spartan was to retreat from battle.
How tall was the average Spartan?
Depending on the type of Spartan the height of a Spartan II (fully armoured) is 7 feet tall (spartan 3) 6’7 feet tall (spartan II) 7 feet tall (spartan 4), and have a reinforced endoskeleton.