Western civic essay #2-3 PDF

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they are notes for exam 1 and they mostly have everything that you need to know for the exam...

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Essay #2

Pericles’ Funeral Oration from Thucydides’ History of The Peloponnesian Wars By Farhatoon Memon Pericles' Funeral Oration is a passage from the History of the Peloponnesian Wars by Thucydides. The document discusses the declaration made by Pericles at the funeral to honor the fallen soldiers who died first in the battle. Pericles also took the time to address the importance of democracy as well as Athens' excellence. Pericles (495-429 B.C.), a brilliant warrior, public speaker, art patron, and political figure, the first man of democratic Athens. In the early days of Greece, Pericles was born into one of Athens's wealthiest families. His father, Xanthippus, was a Persian war hero and his mother belonged to the culturally influential family of the Alcmaeonidae. He grew up in the company of writers as well as artists. Pericles sought to arrest and ostracize Cimon around 463 to 461 for supposedly betraying Athens and emerged as the head of the political party of Athens. He led a powerful military campaign in Corinth in 454 and supported the creation of Athenian colonies in Thrace as well as on the black sea coast. In 443, he was appointed as an army leader. It was a position he was on for the rest of his life. In 429 two sons of Pericles were found dead by the plague. Pericles himself passed away a couple of months later. His death had a horrible impact on Athens. Thucydides (c.460 B.C.–c.400 B.C.) was among the greatest historians who documented nearly 30 years of war and battle between Athens and Sparta. His "History of the Peloponnesian War" established an experience that makes it an identifying text of the historical genre for scale,

understandability, and clarity. Olorus was his father, and his family came from Thrace in northeastern Greece, where Thucydides operated gold mines that were likely to support his historic work. He was born in Halimos, an Athenian suburb, and was in Athens during the plague around 430 B.C., a year after the beginning of the war. He was told to feet in 424, instead, he was cast out for not reaching the town of Amphipolis in time to stop the Spartans from taking over. He focused on his history during the 20 years of being abandoned, gathering evidence, writing, and analyzing. The period and way of the death of Thucydides remain unknown, but it is likely that he died soon after 404, and that he died of violent acts in the bad times of peace might well be accurate. In Athens, in the 2nd century AD, his grave and a memorial to his memory were also to be seen. The reason for this speech that is given by Pericles is as he says “Most of my predecessors in this place have commended him who made this speech part of the law, telling us that it is well that it should be delivered at the burial of those who fall in battle…..I should have thought that the worth which had displayed itself in deeds would be sufficiently rewarded by honours also shown by deeds….” This actively illustrates that he gave this incredible speech in honor of the troops that died in the battle and to let people know that the dead are being respected for protecting and dying for their country. Pericles’ thoughts on democracy are that it’s beneficial for the government and the people. Some of the benefits he mentioned in his speech are “If we look to the laws, they afford equal justice to all in their private differences; if no social standing, advancement in public life falls to reputation for capacity, class considerations not being allowed to interfere with merit; nor again does poverty bar the way...” This demonstrates that he has a really strong belief in having a

democracy since it doesn’t differentiate the people among themselves. Pericles also says democracy is freedom, therefore, he says “if a man is able to serve the state, he is not hindered by the obscurity of his condition. The freedom which we enjoy in our government extends also to our ordinary life. There, far from exercising a jealous surveillance over each other, we do not feel called upon to be angry with our neighbour for doing what he likes…” This tells us that being in a democratic place will give the people the freedom of doing what they desire and no one will come to an opinion about them. In Pericles’ speech, he mentions Athens' significance. He says “In short, I say that as a city we are the school of Hellas, while I doubt if the world can produce a man who, where he has only himself to depend upon, is equal to so many emergencies, and graced by so happy a versatility, as the Athenian.'' Pericles is saying that the people of Athens are happy in their life and it's a place of peace. He also says “Our constitution does not copy the laws of neighbouring states; we are rather a pattern to others than imitators ourselves.” This rationalizes that Athens has its own rules and regulations. Also, those other countries have adopted the lifestyle of Athenians. Later on, he explains “we provide plenty of means for the mind to refresh itself from business.” Later on, he says that they have games and events that make them different from others. This means that the people of Athens are at ease and are not under any pressure which makes Athens significant from other countries. Since Pericles presented us with the glory of Athens, he later started to associate Athens with other nations, such as Sparta. For example, when comparing the government, they are very distinct from each other. Athens is a direct democracy that includes elected officials, ten generals, magistrates, a council of 500, and an assembly. Sparta is an oligarchy that means that

few control it. It includes two kings, five overseers, and 28 councilmen. With 300.00 inhabitants, including slaves, civilians, and foreigners, looking at the population of Athens, they have the most. There are 108,000 Sparta persons, including Spartiates, slaves, and semi-enslaved. Both Athens and Sparta have the same type of social system. Both Athens and Sparta have very different values and lifestyles. Athens' lifestyle is that they consider their civic responsibility is to join in the government. They have deep confidence in their faith as well. Sparta, on the other hand, has numerous lifestyles and values. Some of them are that gold, silver, or other privilege is not given to the resident. They are trained to survive in challenging conditions. Spartan boys are trained from a very early age to become soldiers. When it comes to the role of the women. Both Athens and Sparta are significant from each other since women and girls from Athens are kept in their homes and are not permitted to be part of either sport or government. The wives are viewed as their husband's property. Looking at the Spartans, who believe that the targets for women are to create strong and healthy babies. The females were permitted to own their property and manage it. They had the right to walk around and enjoy themselves. it can be seen that both Athens and Sparta are very different, that's what makes them enemies. In conclusion, Pericles gave a speech to the soldiers who lost their lives in the battle. He spoke of the supremacy of Athens and his views on democracy.

Bibliography https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/pericles#section_3 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thucydides-Greek-historian https://www.lcps.org/cms/lib/VA01000195/Centricity/Domain/10599/athens%20v%20sparta%20 packet.pdf https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/ancient/pericles-funeralspeech.asp...