T h e A m e r i c a n U n i v e r s i t y o f R o m e HSM 201 - Survey of Western Civilization I

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T h e A m e r i c a n U n i v e r s i t y o f
R o m e HSM 201 - Survey of Western
Civilization I
Session 6 The Hellenistic Age Expansion of
Greek Ideals. Globalization of the
Mediterranean World? Greek culture pervades Near
East for centuries.
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Evolution of Greek artperfecting art as
perfecting politics?
Apollo of Tenea Apollo of Piombino
Critian Boy Hermes and Dionysius
560 500
480 350, Praxiteles
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Athens Political zenith of the Polis
gt Athens heads the Delian League, and controls
the Eastern Mediterraneangt Reconstruction of
the city wallsgt Strategos Cimon leads to
further victories against Persians at seagt
Athens coerces the subject poleis into the
alliance by force exploitation slave society
gt Social unrest more power to the thetes
(people)gt Pericles, 460, aristocrat populist,
enfranchisement of the people its political
power prerogatives, anti-Spartan politics,
construction of great temples of the Acropolis,
Phidias architect.
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gt Resentment over the power of Athens, after the
victory over Persiathe last battle at Plataea
was fought by Spartagt Corinth, close to Athens,
fights Athenian control of the seas, allied with
Sparta in a rival leaguegt 431exclusive powers
on land and seagt Siege to Athens, 429.
Epidemics. Demagogues take power, refuse peacegt
Alcibiades attacks Syracusegt Brief oligarchic
government Athens in exile create government
democracy restored 409gt Internecine fights in
Athens, defeat of fleet in 404.
The decline of Athens and the Poleis The
Peloponnesian Wars
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Athens and the Profusion of Ideas and
Philosophies - and Arts (amidst the political
decline)Political philosophy (concerned with
the state) in the context of the destruction of
Greek poleisgt failure of the Poleis and its
scalegt Corinthian War (395-387) front
against Sparta peace brokered by Persiagt
Epaminondas of Thebes defeats Spartans 371 the
3rd player
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Plato (429-347) In The Republic the ideal
society (aiming at social harmony order, over
liberty or equality) should be comprised of three
classesphilosopher kings, military men, and
merchants. People's membership in a class would
depend on their education Those who had
completed the highest level of education would
make the wisest decisions and thus should be the
rulers of society its guardians following the
Idea of the Good incorruptible?) Aristotle
(384-322 BC) the founder of the scientific
approach (observing the material world) to
political theory. His Politics, which classified
governments as monarchies, aristocracies, and
democracies, according to their control by one
person, a select few, or many persons,
successfully combined an empirical investigation
of the facts and a critical inquiry into their
ideal possibilities, thus providing a challenging
model of political studies.
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The deteriorated state of the polis was the
important subject of their thinking. The
government type democracy, in crisis. The scale
not Greece, perhaps not even the current poleis,
that had grown too much (need of a novel system?
limit their size?). Aristotle proposed a
combination of MoArDe systems to reorganize the
polis (nothing new). Opposed in thinking politics
as means to an end, or politics as an end in
itself.
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The military expansion of Macedonia, after
securing Greece, its naturally first target
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• Objectives in this flash conquest? (336-323)
• gt Expansion of Greek culture? His globalization?
• gt Control of more resources for Macedonia? (this
  territory was not very well developed at the
  start) Plunder?
• gt Rejects peace treaty proposal Continues war
• gt Alexander overestimated the strength of
  Persians? Underestimated his strategies?
• gt Do his campaigns seem to stop? Do they show any
  planning? Was there an idea for ruling it?
• gt Was does it mean to found Alexandrias
  everywhere?
• gt Apply the ideas of his mentor?
• gt Special skills to rule? How about adoption
  traditions? Marriages and integration, new nobles
  loyal (destroying nevertheless the centers of
  Persian power)

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• The aftermath of Alex Division of the empire and
  perseverance of Greek culture
• gt The three successors seem to adopt the local
  traditions in support of their political process
  of legitimacy
• gt Two-faced power lo locals and to Greeks
• gt Ptolemaic power in Alexandria and Egypt for 3
  c. The city evolves and prospers the countryside
  is exploited any different from the real
  Pharaohs?
• gt Revival of the Persian Empire
• gt The less fortunate Macedonia
• gt Explosive growth of (free unregulated) trade
  
• gt Cultural advances, the birth of Hellenism.

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The division of the empire and the birth of the
Hellenistic world
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Hellenistic Art syncretism between Greek
Classical art and Oriental traditions gt What
were the principal themes of Hellenistic
architecture and sculpture?
150 BC 150 BC Rhodes (copy?)
150-100 BC
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• Q of chapter 4 of the Expansion of Greece
• gt What conditions led to the growing number of
  mercenaries in the 4th c. BC.
• gt Why did Platos ideal polis differ from
  Aristotles?
• gt What accounts for the remarkable success of the
  Macedonian conquests?
• gt What characteristics defined and distinguished
  the three major Hellenistic kingdoms?
• gt Why as prosperity so unevenly distributed in
  the Hellenistic economy?
• gt What was the relationship between Epicureanism
  and Stoicism?
• gt What were the principal themes of Hellenistic
  architecture and sculpture?
• gt Why did science and medicine flourish in this
  period?
• gt What changes occurred during the Hellenistic
  period to the polis-based culture of classical
  Greece?