During the Greek Golden Age, art and philosophy expressed hellenic
weltanschauung, their unique outlook on the world and way of life. Through the
works of artists, playwrights, and philosophers, one can see both sides of the
conflicted systems of the world, such as; good vs. evil, order vs. chaos,
stability vs. flux, relativism vs. absolutism and balance and harmony. The
Greeks were materialists. They adopted the philosophical doctrine which says
that physical matter is the only reality in the universe; everything else,
including thought, feeling, mind and will can be explained in terms of physical
laws. Their materialism was expressed in an excessive regard for worldly,
beautiful material things and concerns. They used their art to show the glories
of humanity and man. The sculptors of the Golden Age aimed to create graceful,
strong and perfectly formed figures. Their art showed natural positions and
thoughtful expressions rather than abstract art forms. Their standards of order
and balance became standards for classical art in western civilization. The
Greeks were proud of their temples and other architecture, made to honor the
gods and beautify the polis (city-state). Their famous architectural styles were
the heavy Doric columns and the slender scrolled Ionian columns. The Parthenon,
the Greek temple for the goddess Athena, is a impeccable example of symmetry and
proportion. The sides of the Parthenon give an optical illusion of perfect
balance on all sides. Their desire for balance in art and architecture
represents the balance of the world; order and moderation are expressed in the
simplicity of lines and shapes. The resulting overall structure works together
to achieve harmony.
In ancient Greece, public drama was more than entertainment. It was a form of
public education. It dealt with issues of importance to the people, such as; the
authority of the leaders, the power of the people, questions of justice,
morality, wars, peace, the duties of the gods, family life and city living.
Aeschylus wrote about the furies and how they punished man for wrongdoings. This
shows that he believed that chaos would be punished because order (and law) is
the ideal state. Sophocles is best known for his plays of Oedipus. Those plays
dealt with family and civic loyalty. The Greeks emphasized, particularly in
their plays, the importance of loyalty as a goal to strive for. We learn a lot
about Greek views through their philosophy, which literally means the love of
knowledge. The Greeks educated through a series of questions and answers, in
order to better teach about life and the universe. The first philosopher was
Thales. He believed in absolutism and eternal matter. He said that water was the
original matter and that without it, there would be no life. Parmenides stated
that stability and permanence were the underlying conditions of the universe. He
believed that change is only an illusion and that one's senses can only grasp
superficial realities of change. Heroditus argued with Parmenides saying that
change was the basic condition of reality. He further claimed that all
permanence was false. Thus he saw things as naturally being in flux rather than
a stable state. Democritus argued with both Parmenides and Heroditus. He
insisted that there is nothing spiritual and that only matter existed. He then
went on to say that everything is made of little invisible particles, hooked up
in different arrangements. He was an atomist. The Greek philosophers went on to
question the nature of being and the meaning of life. Pythagoras was the first
metaphysicist, one who studies beyond physical existence. He believed in a
separation between spirit and body, an opposition between good and evil and
between discord and harmony. In the 5th century, the Greeks learned from
Sophists, who believed that the views of society are standards and the sole
measurement of good, truth, justice and beauty. Protagoras was a sophist. He
said that, man is the measure of all things. He believed in a constant flux, and
that nothing is absolutely right or wrong, but subject to change. His view is
much like that held by Parmenides. The philosophers then asked a question such
as; what would happen if things that were wrong were seen by society as
acceptable? What, for example, if society condoned murder?
