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Was Greece the Ideal Society?
Was
Greece the ideal society? It is an intriguing question, one
that begs asking and answering. Let's examine some
points:
- The Greeks invented
mathematics. Pythagoras,
Euclid,
and others invented a system of number manipulation that
is the basis for all higher math today.
 Greek
scientists were the first to pursue science
systematically. Aristotle,
the father of modern science, believed that inductive
reasoning was key to an understanding of science.
Hippocrates,
the father of modern medicine, based his work on
observation. Thales developed the first two steps of the
scientific method: collect information, then make a
hypothesis about that information. Aristotle, studying
later, completed the scientific method theory by stating
the need to test a hypothesis. Thales
also correctly predicted a solar eclipse.
Aristarchus
concluded that Earth revolves around the Sun. Hipparchus
created a system of celestial mechanics to explain how
the planets moved. The
Greeks fought each other for nearly their entire
independent existence. From the first glimpses of Minoan
and Mycenean civilizations, wartime strife was rampant.
The victory over Persia was a brief respite from the
continual infighting that defined the Greek existence.
Athens,
in all its cultural glory, fell the victim to its own
hubris and was defeated in the Peleponnesian
War.
Sparta,
the main victor in that war, itself fell to Thebes 30
years later. These constant wars served only to weaken
the Greeks as a whole and make them ripe for
takeover&emdash;first by Alexander and finally by Rome.
The Greeks were proud but too proud.- Transportation was
difficult at times and impossible at others. The valleys
containing some city-states were surrounded by high
mountains. The Greeks built relatively few roads or
bridges. Transport of goods was done mainly by water. But
harsh winters made water transportation risky and land
transportation almost impossible. This served to further
the individualism of the city-states.
- In Athens especially
but in other city-states as well laws were passed by the
people, who were elected to their posts. In Athens, all
government officials were chosen annually by drawing
lots. If an official was unpopular, he could be banished
for 10 years. Even in Sparta, which was ruled by one or
two kings, the people formed an Assembly and Senate and
followed a constitution of laws.
 Certain
things were sacred to the Greeks. One was their common
heritage; another was their religion. Both were on
display at the Olympic Games, first staged in 776 B.C.
Each time the Games took place, all hostilities would
cease and athletes would be allowed to travel to Olympia
to compete and then travel home again. Today's
philosophy has its roots in ancient Greece.
Socrates,
Plato,
and Aristotle popularized the main tenets of
philosophy&emdash;questioning, probing, careful
examination. No subject was spared their scrutiny. What
is the world made of? Why are we here? What happens when
we die? What is it to be a good person? What makes a
successful businessman? What makes a good city-state? Why
are wars fought? All these questions were vigorously
asked and answered.- Slaves could not marry
or have a family. They could own property or testify in
court. They did work as craftsmen, in some cases
receiving the same wages as free men. Slaves served in
mines, on plantations, in households and on the
battlefield. In mines and on plantations, slaves worked
in very harsh conditions. In the home, slaves were
servants and received better treatment; on the
battlefield, they were relegated to carrying baggage,
cooking meals, and burying the dead. Greek society came
to depend on slave labor. Some historians believe that at
the height of Athens' Golden Age, up to one-third of all
Athenians were slaves.
 Greek
literature is unsurpassed in its contribution to later
societies' work. Centuries before the Golden Age, Homer
wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey. The Greeks
invented drama and created some of the world's best
plays. Shining stars were Aeschylus,
Sophocles,
Euripides,
and Aristophanes,
the latter writing comedies and the former three writing
tragedies. Plato crystallized Socrates' and his own
philosophy into the Dialogues. Aristotle wrote
Poetics and many other works that have stood the
test of time and influenced philosophers and scientists
for centuries. Herodotus,
the "father of history," wrote a history of the
Persian
Wars;
Thucydides,
himself a general, wrote a history of the Peleponnesian
Wars.
So,
was Greece the ideal society? You be the judge.
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