Athenian Imperialism
Who was Pericles?
He was an Athenian statesman and general who was associated with the Periclean building program on the acropolis. He also held the position of strategos.
What is Thucydides responsible for writing? Give one problem associated with this work.
The History of the Peloponnesian War
Problems: Broadly, bias and hypocrisy.
- He says he doesn’t use myth (which can be “unreliable”) but then goes on to speak about mythological events including the Trojan War, Helen, Heracles, etc.
- He says that he will report speeches as evidence, but then indicates he also doesn’t remember the words well and that he sometimes pushes the words to be what he believes was called for by the situation.
Also, the history is incomplete and ends in 411.
Which two parties formed the primary rivalry of the Peloponnesian War?
Sparta and Athens
Who are the sophists and what are their goals?
A group of rhetoricians who teach virtue for money. They stress the art of persuasion, which is important in political spheres.
Goals: to win the argument/to argue either side.
What kinds of standard plot tropes do we find in Old Comedy? Name one.
- Moves from misfortune to good fortune
- Comic plot: triumph of the comic hero who is able to solve real-world problems with totally unrealistic and fantastic solutions
What is the Delian League? Why was it formed?
An alliance between Athens and several other city-states. It was formed in an effort to maintain their position of power over the Persians (also pirates!).
Which primary reasons does Thucydides cite as the reasons for the war? Name one.
Athens’ growing power sparked fear in Sparta
Disputes over minor states (Epidamnus, Corcyra, Potidaea, Megara) escalate into confrontations between major states (Athens, Sparta, Corinth)
What was Pericles’ main strategy in the first phase of the Peloponnesian War (aka the Archidamian War)? Name one component.
- Emphasize Athens’ sea power vs Sparta’s land power
- Retreat into city and abandon Attica
- Avoid engaging the Peloponnesians on land
- Raid the coast of the Peloponnesus using ships
What is the name of the rhetorical method involving question-and-answer speeches? And, what is the name of the rhetorical method involving the ability to argue both sides of a case? (Hint: English terms!)
Dialectic method
Anti-logic method
What is the main problem of the protagonist in Aristophanes’ Clouds?
Strepsiades has many debts and wants to get rid of them by learning how to debate. When he struggles to learn the skill of argumentation from Socrates’ school, he sends his son to learn in his stead.
His son, who previously had struggled with gambling, ends up leaving the school “worse” in the eyes of his father as he no longer respects his social position in a patriarchal society.
Name one structure that is associated with the Periclean building program and give one point of significance about the overall building program.
Parthenon, Erechtheion, Temple of Athena Nike, Propylaea, etc.
Significance: Athenian imperialism in the wake of the Persian Wars and sack of Athens. Symbolizing revitalization and monumentalizing Persian othering for Athenian benefit.
Name one major event or debate covered in The History of the Peloponnesian War, and summarize it.
Some examples: plague at Athens; Pericles’ funeral oration; the Mytilenian debate; the Melian Dialogue; Sicilian Expedition
What was the Sicilian Expedition, and who are the main Athenians involved?
Date: c. 415-413 BCE
So-called reason for getting involved: to help Segesta against Selinus
One potential real reason: to conquer Sicily
Actors: Nicias and Alcibiades, statesmen; they disagreed about whether or not to send support to Segesta. A series of events led to Alcibiades' flight to Sparta.
What is relativism and how does it relate to the sophists and their teachings?
Relativism is the idea that there is no absolute truth. You can persuade someone of anything, and anything can be true.
- Cultural, Ethical, Religious Agnosticism/Atheism
Parados, agon and parabasis are all key components of Old Comedy. Define two.
Parados: entrance of chorus
Agon: Debate between the comic hero and his antagonist, or between two opponents (e.g., Right v Wrong in Clouds)
Parabasis: also known as metatheater; stepping forward, the breaking of the dramatic illusion, direct address to the audience.
What is one way in which Athenian imperialism was depicted/symbolized in the sculptural program of the Parthenon?
Potential scenes: Amazonomachy, Centauromachy, Gigantomachy, Panathenaea, Birth of Athena, Athena v. Poseidon
Many of these scenes show Greeks versus others, indicating the Athenian position over the Persians. Others indicate Athenian civic pride.
Name two components of Thucydides’ historical methodology (in his eyes, at least).
- He says he will write a real history based on evidence.
- He says he will use speeches from the war to analyze the situations at hand.
- He says that he will not exaggerate the way that poets exaggerate, nor will he lean into drama in order to captivate an audience the way that prose writers do. Prose writers also, according to Thucydides, are influenced too much by mythology.
- He says that he is writing in order to be useful for people who want to come to know the events of the war. He wants the work to last onwards, not to be a piece of entertainment.
What was the Peace of Nicias, and what was one condition of it?
A temporary peace established c. 421 BCE between Sparta and Athens.
Conditions:
- Athens keeps empire
- Sparta to restore Amphipolis and the Athenian interests in the Chalcidic peninsula.
- Prisoners on both sides will be liberated
Physis and Nomos are key features of Sophistic speech and relativism (as well as surfacing in Thucydides). What are they?
Physis → Nature; Nomos → Law, convention
- The Sophists frequently question whether ideas are due to nature (physis) or convention (nomos).
Aristophanes’ depiction of Socrates in the Clouds differs from the depiction in Plato’s Defense. Name two differences.
Aristophanes:
- Socrates had a school (Thinkery) with students who paid fees to enter.
- Socrates is interested in natural science, astronomy, rhetoric, grammar, geography etc.
- He rejects the common gods and introduces new ones.
Plato:
- Socrates had no school and no pupils.
- He only studies ethics and virtue (arete).
- Plato’s Socrates has an intellectualistic approach to ethics. Meaning that every one of us would follow ethical behaviors and do what is right if they knew what right was.
Both:
- The only thing in common from both is the “midwife method”, related to intellectualistic approach to wisdom.
- The idea that you don’t have to lecture– the best way to teach is to ask questions.
A few key themes that emerge in Thucydides are Athenian imperialism/exceptionalism, the concept of free speech in Athens, and Athenian self-interest. Describe one moment in Thucydides where we see Athenian imperialism and/or exceptionalism.
E.g., in the Funerary Oration (Athens as a teacher to Greece, superior to Sparta, etc.), Mytilenean Debate (importance of maintaining power over subjugated), Melian Dialogue (imperial agenda doesn't require justice; it is okay to be hated; natural law).
Define realpolitik and describe its relationship to Thucydides.
Realpolitik: power politics; an understanding of politics that is based on power, practicality and self-interest.
People disagree about what Thucydides believed about Athens, from his History. Was he advocating for Realpolitik, or was it a critique of Athenian imperialism?
Sparta, with Persian support, defeated Athens at Aegospotami in 405 BCE. What were the conditions of the peace in 404 BCE (name 2)?
Conditions:
- No total destruction of Athens
- Athens becomes an ally of Sparta
- Long walls and Piraeus must be dismantled
- Whole fleet must be given up, except 12 triremes
- All Athenian foreign possessions given up
- Exiles restored
Define parrhesia. What does this term mean and what does it have to do with the Sophists?
“Freedom in speech": every citizen’s right to address his fellow citizens in the political assemblies. It is necessary to know how to speak in Athens, then, to participate in government: e.g., to defend oneself or to propose something to the assembly.
The Sophists teach speech and charge for their teaching– they stress the art of persuasion, which is important in political spheres.
How does Old Comedy differ from New Comedy? Describe two differences in the characteristics of Old Comedy versus New Comedy.
Old Comedy:
- Characters: Vulgar, but not wicked; often farmers, poor Athenians, the everyman
- Chorus: Often dressed as animals, facilitates parabasis.
- Plot: Comic hero solving real-world problems with unrealistic solutions, political satire/current events, vulgarity.
New Comedy:
- Characters: often more middle class, not representing the Athenian poor/everyman.
- Chorus: No chorus.
- Plot: Love stories, more romantic. No political content.