Chapter One
Classic Age: Greek Culture and Roman Culture
I.Greek culture
1. The Historical Background
Whenever we talk about the ancient Greece, we cannot fail to mention the Trojan War which lasted ten years beginning from 1194 B.C. and ending in 1184 BC. Many stories have been told about this war. But Homer told the story more vividly in his Iliad.
In the 5th century B.C. Greece entered a more glorious period when the Greek people drove away the Persian invaders and Athens established democracy in which only the adult male Greek citizens could use their power and rights. Athens developed its economy depending on the slave system. The Olympic Games also originated from ancient Greece, and it revived in 1896.
During this period, science, philosophy, literature, art and history writing developed quickly. But when foreign threat was removed, a civil war broke out between Athens and Sparta at the end of the century.
In the second half of the 4th century B. C, one of the Greek states called Macedon became more and more powerful under the leadership of Alexander the King who unified the whole Greece as Qinshihuang (the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty) unified the whole China. Macedon enjoyed large territories including parts of Europe, Asia and Africa.
But history is always like such that fall comes after rise. No country can avoid such a fate. In 146 B.C. Greece was conquered by the Romans.
2. Literature
1) Homer (荷马)
Homer
Homer lived around 700 B.C. It is said that he was a slave and blind. It is considered that he wrote two epics，namely,the Iliad (《伊利亚特》，另译《伊利昂记》) and the Odyssey (《奥德赛》，另译《奥德修记》).
The Iliad deals with the war between Troy and the united forces of the states on the mainland of southern Greece. The alliance of the Greek army was led by Agamemnon with Achilles, Odysseus and other generals as their main commanders. Trojan forces were led by Hector. The war ended with the victory on the Greek side.
The Odyssey tells the story about the return of Odysseus after the Trojan War to his country Ithaca. The first 12 volumes deal with the adventures on the sea. The latter 12 volumes deal with the adventures on land. The epic ended with his union with his faithful wife Penelope after his test-flirtation with her. Penelope is a person like the faithful lady Wang Baochuan in a Chinese play.
2) Lyric Poetry
Two famous lyric poets of this time are worth remembering. They are Sappho (萨福) and Pindar (品达).
Sappho (ca. 612-580 B.C.), born in Lesbos, is the most important lyric poet of ancient Greece and is famous for her burning love poems because of which the English Romantic poet George Gordon Lord Byron called her “burning Sappho” .
Plato called her the tenth Muse.
Pindar (ca. 518-438 B.C.) is famous for his odes celebrating the victories at the sports games, such as the 14 Olympian odes. His style was imitated by many later poets of renown such as John Dryden and others. John Keats, a British Romantic poet of great achievements, wrote some of the greatest odes ever written in English history.
3) Drama
Greek drama developed quickly and prosperously in the 5th century B.C. based on its rich tradition. The Greek drama has the following features. First, most early plays were performed at religious festivals. Second, the plays were performed in open-air theaters. Third, actors wore masks. Fourth, there was a big chorus but few actors.
In the Greek drama during this period, tragedy is the most noteworthy. The achievements of tragedy are greater than those of comedy. The tragedies mostly wrote about royal families, noble families and great heroes. It gives the impression that the term “tragedy” is applied only to high-born people. In this sense, some tragedies in Chinese drama cannot use this term because some tragedies in Chinese drama talk about the fate of the common people.
The Greek drama has something in common with the ancient Chinese drama in which actors wore masks and dramatic faces with diverse colors and designs as symbols of character. In Sichuan drama, the dramatic faces are more mysterious and interesting.
A. Aeschylus (埃斯库罗斯, 525-456
B.
C.)
Aeschylus
Aeschylus wrote Prometheus Bound (《被缚的普罗米修斯》),Persians (《波斯人》) and Agamemnon (《阿伽门农》), all in verse. He is good at portraying vivid characters with his majestic poetry, though the fate of death for those tragic people was inescapable.
Aeschylus used two actors and a chorus in his plays.
Aeschylus was much read and studied. Percy Bysshe Shelley, an English Romantic poet, even wrote Prometheus Unbound to praise the sacrificing spirit of Prometheus who stole fire from heaven for the good of the human race.
B. Sophocles (索福克勒斯, 496-406 B.
C.)
Sophocles
Sophocles wrote Oedipus the King (《俄狄浦斯王》), Electra (《伊莱克特拉》) and Antigone（《安提戈涅》).
Sophocles is best remembered for his most famous play Oedipus the King, which influenced not only later tragedy writing but also literary criticism. With a very effective reading of and profound thinking about this play, Sigmund Freud (西格蒙德·弗洛伊德, 1856-1939), the Austrian doctor and psychiatrist invented the term “Oedipus Complex” which became a useful tool in the hands of the psychoanalytic critics. Some people say that, in light of this theory, Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Cao Yu’s The Thunder Storm also have the Oedipus complex, which is questionable.
The play Oedipus the King tells the story of Oedipus who committed a terrible sin unconsciously. When Oedipus was born, his parents learned from an oracle that he would kill his father and marry his mother when he grew up. So the baby Oedipus was abandoned on a hillside by a shepherd, but he was picked up, rescued by a nother shepherd from another country. He was raised as the son by the king of Corinth. When
he grew up he learned of the oracle. In order to avoid such fate, Oedipus left his country. On the way to a neighboring country, he came across an arrogant and irritable man. In a quarrel, Oedipus killed him. When he reached the neighboring country Thebes, he solved the problem of the city by ridding it of the Sphinx riddle. As a hero in the eyes of the people in Thebes, he, as promised, married Jocasta, the queen of the country, without knowing that he married his mother. It is when the messenger from Corinth came that the truth was unveiled: the person he killed many years ago was his own father. Realizing what sin he had committed, Oedipus stabbed out his eyes and put himself in exile. Jocasta committed suicide.
Sophocles is noted for his tragic writing. He made some improvement in his plays: a third actor appeared and the size of chorus was much smaller.
Sophocles made his contribution to the art of drama. He used three actors and decreased the size and the function of the chorus. He made the drama develop in the direction of performing rather than narrating by the chorus.
C. Euripides (欧里庇得斯, 484-406 B.C.)
Euripides
Euripides wrote Andromache (《安德洛玛刻》。安德洛玛刻：赫克托耳的忠实妻子), Medea（《美狄亚》and Trojan Women（《特洛伊女人》.
In comparison with Aeschylus and Sophocles, Euripides was less influential but more realistic, always concerned with conflicts, on account of which he was referred to as the first playwright of “problem plays”.
D. Comedy and Aristophanes （阿里斯托芬, ca. 450-380 B.C.)
Aristophanes
Comedy also developed quickly in the 5th century B.C. But it was less brilliant than tragedy.
The best comedy playwright is Aristophanes who left 11 plays among which Frogs, Clouds, Wasps and Birds are worth seeing. Aristophanes was bold enough to satirize even some of the famous people of his day, including Socrates and Euripides respectively in his Clouds and Frogs.He was often criticized for his use of coarse language in his plays.
3. History
1) Herodotus (希罗多德, 484-430 B.C.)
Herodotus
Herodotus is famous for the writing of wars between the Greeks and the Persians, because he believed that “the great and wonderful deeds done by Greeks and Persians should not lack renown.”
The remarkable features of his history writing are his application of anecdotes, digressions and lively dialogue, which were more interesting than accurate, quite like
the style in Luo Guanzhong’s The Legend of Three Kingdoms (《三国演义》) instead of Chen Shou’s The History of Three Kingdoms（《三国志》）. Herodotus, though not very accurate, as the forerunner of history writing, is thus often called “Father of History”.
2) Thucydides （修西得底斯, ca. 460-404 B.C.)
Thucydides
Thucydides, as a historian, wrote more accurately and carefully with imagination and power, paying much attention to the causes and effects of every historical event.
His historical writings focus on the wars between Athens and Sparta and between Athens and Syracuse which was a Greek state located on the island of Sicily.
Thucydides is called by Macaulay, a famous historian, “the greatest historian that ever lived”.
4. Philosophy
The Greek people’s curiosity about things and the nature of them cultivated their enquiring mind to search, doubt, speculate, imagine and form new ideas. Imagination is not science, but it is the foundation of science and base of philosophy. So the Greeks created their mythologies and formed their ideas about the universe and its operation.
1) Pythagoras (毕达哥拉斯, c a. 580-500 B.C.)
Pythagoras
Pythagoras, founder of scientific mathematics, is one of the early philosophers who boldly thought about the universe. In his eyes, only numbers spoke and all things in the world were numbers. He used numbers to understand the world and the universe. He put forward the following concepts: point, line, magnitude, surface, body and proportion. He had his view on beauty, thinking the circle or a round object is the most beautiful thing. This idea influenced many writers and poets who made very good use of this theory in their literary creation.
2) Heracleitue (赫拉克利特, c a. 540-480 B.C.)
Heracleitue
Heracleitue is remembered for his theory of fire, theory of change and theory of harmony. To him, among the four elements, fire was the main element of the universe and the base of everything. His theory of change is still instructive. He maintained that all things change and nothing are still. Even Marxist theory of change accords with the idea of Heracleitue. This best serves the theory of development. Heracleitue’s theory of harmony allowed the mingling of opposites, which insists that harmony is achieved in the process of solving the strife and conflicts.
3) Democritus (德谟克利特, c a. 460-370 B.C.)
Democritus
Democritus is one of the earliest philosophical materialists. He was one the earliest advocators to focus on the speculation of the atomic structure of matter. Karl Marx made a very deep and systematic study of his materialist philosophy.
4) Socrates (苏格拉底, c a. 470-399 B.C.)
Socrates
Socrates is often mentioned together with Plato and Aristotle whenever people talk about the ancient Greek philosophy and thinking. Socrates taught Plato. Plato taught Aristotle. They were all great masters in the field of philosophy. In terms of teaching methodology, it is Socrates who invented the teaching method of interrogative and interactive approach in the same manner as Confucius did when he taught his disciples.
The story of Socrates is recorded by Plato in Dialogues (《对话集》).Socrates is famous for his dialectical method. It is a method of argument by questions and answers. To explain an idea, Socrates applied the way of talking with others and led
them to express their own ideas on one question. When the speakers made mistakes, Socrates would correct them and illustrate the reasons why they were wrong and illogical. In this way, he made his viewpoint clear. This is what we call the dialectical method. But in doing so, he offended many people and caused his disaster. Whe n he was seventy, in 399 B. C., he was accused of harming the city and the young people by not believing in gods. Because of this, he was put to death. He made a very good speech on death, “The Apology of Socrates”, which is but a dream and returning home. According to him, death is but a change and migration of the soul from this world to another. His idea influenced many people and writers.
5) Plato (柏拉图, ca. 428-348 B.C.)
Plato
Plato, as the disciple of Socrates, made his greatest contribution to the world in writing The Dialogues, a collection of Socrates’ life and ideas, like the Analects in which Confucius’ teaching and his dialogues with his disciples were recorded.
Plato’s philosophy is idealism. To answer the question how man could obtain knowledge in the complex and uncertain world, Plato made a reply that man obtained knowledge from a certain general “idea”. The order of things is as follows. Idea comes first, then the making of a concrete thing, then the recreation of the thing in the form of art. To him, the idea is more real than a concrete thing. So in his eyes, poets or artists of any kind are twice or thrice removed from truth and cannot tell truth. And according to his understanding, poets who may harm the young and the republic should be driven out of the country. Plato’s ideas were later even accepted and assimilated into Christian thought.
Plato had his concept of kingship. He thought that a king should be a philosopher. But he failed to coach a prince and turn him to such a person.
Plato should be fondly remembered to have established an Academy, where he spent 41 years teaching his disciples philosophy, mathematics, astronomy and so on.
6) Aristotle (亚里士多德, 384-322 B.C.)
Aristotle
To Athens, Aristotle was a foreigner, who was born in Stagire. He was Plato’s disciple, but he was more versatile in that he taught and wrote about logic, ethics, politics, metaphysics, psychology, physics, zoology, poetry and rhetoric. Most of his ideas on the above-mentioned fields dominated the world culture for over a thousand years. So it is not overstatement to say that Aristotle is the “father of science or knowledge”.
He studied at Plato’s Academy. Like his teacher Plato who was tutor of a prince, he also had a similar chance. But he was more fortunate than his teacher because the prince of Macedon he tutored became the most powerful King in Europe. It was Alexander the Great. When he retired to Athens he founded his own school at Lyceum, where he dedicated himself to teaching and research. His main works includes Ethic s ( moral philosophy)，Politics (the art of governing)，Poetics( literary theory) and Rhetoric (the art of persuasion).
The definition of tragedy he gives in Poetics is as follows:
Tragedy, then, is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; in language embellished with each kind of artistic
ornament, the several kinds being found in separate parts of the play; in the
form of action, not of narrative; through pity and fear effecting the proper
purgation of these emotions.
Aristotle was different from his teacher Plato in some ways. He learned from Plato but developed his own understanding of the world. He loved his teacher, but he loved truth the more. Here are the differences between Aristotle and Plato.
A. Aristotle believed that theory came from direct observation of nature, while Plato’s philosophy relied on subjective thinking. These are respectively the base of materialism and idealism.
B. Aristotle held the idea that the concrete individual realities are made up of “form” (idea) and matter, while Plato thought that ideas were more real than the physical world. Hence the difference between materialism and idealism.
C. Aristotle contended that happiness is the aim of life. But, to him, happiness means something that could be realized through a life of reason, goodness a nd contemplation rather than the so-called happiness in a vulgar and low sense.
7) Other Schools of Thought
Besides the above-mentioned philosophers, there were many schools of philosophers around Socrates’ time. They reflected the active thinking of the ancient Greeks, just like the different schools of philosophers in the Zhou Dynasty and the Spring and Autumn Period in ancient China. During this period in ancient Greece, there was the school of sophists（诡辩学派）, the school of The Cynics (犬儒派), the school of the Sceptics（怀疑派）, the school of the Epicureans (享乐派) and the school of the Stoics（斯多葛学派）. These schools, especially the later four schools, often argued with each other.
A. The Sophists（诡辩学派）
This school was represented by Protagoras （普罗塔哥拉）born around 500 B. C., who promoted the art of arguing. His main work is On the Gods (《诸神论》). He is
regarded as one the early humanists with his famous doctrine of man being the measure of all things.
B. The Cynics (犬儒派)
The school of the Cynics was represented by Diogenes (戴奥真尼斯, ca. 412-323 B. C.). The word “cynic” in Greek means “dog”. They were called Cynics because their leader Diogenes would like to live a dog’s life. This school had the following features. First, they refused to follow the conventions. Second, they advocated self-sufficiency and extreme simplicity, which was later absorbed into Calvinism and Puritanism). Third, they advocated brotherhood among all human beings and animals, which was accepted by many progressive humanists and writers like Walt Whitman and other poets. Fourth, they defied the rich and power. They were something like the school or gang of b eggars often seen in Jin Y ong’s novels.
C. The Sceptics（怀疑派）
The school of the Sceptics was represented by Pyrrhon（皮洛, ca. 360-272 B.C.). They were thus called because they thought that some knowledge could not be attained, though some could be obtained. They had a doubtful eye on the established truth which has been accepted by others.
D. The Epicureans (享乐派)
The schools of the Epicureans was represented by Epicurus（伊壁鸠鲁, ca. 341-270）.To this school, pleasure was the best thing in life, which, according to Epicurus, means a state without pain and great emotional change rather than sensual enjoyment in the usual sense. They thought that the practice of virtue could lead to pleasure.
Like Democritus, Epicurus was a materialist who also believed that the world was made up of atoms.
E. The Stoics（斯多葛学派）
The school of the Stoics was represented by Zeno（齐诺, ca. 335-263 B.C.）. To thi s school, the aim of life is duty rather than pleasure in any sense. So they advocated simplicity of life and asceticism. They also advocated that man should face hardship and misfortune bravely.
Zeno was a materialist, believing in the existence of the real world and natural laws rather than chance, regarding virtue as the only good in life.
5. Science
Besides many people who were both philosophers and scientists like Pythagoras, Democritus, Plato and Aristotle, two other men were worth mentioning. One was Euclid（欧几里德, 330-275 B. C.）, who was, noted for his Element s (《解析几何》), called the father of geometry. The other was Archimedes（阿基米德, 287-212 B. C.) .
Archimedes was a famous scientist not only in geometry, but also in arithmetic, mechanics and hydrostatics. He was remembered for discovering the loss of weight of a body equaling to the weight of the water displaced and his invention of some defensive machines.
The famous illustration of his principle of the lever (杠杆定律)is what he said to the king: “Give me a place to stand, and I will move the world.”
6. Art, Architecture, Sculpture and Pottery
1) Art
Greek art is the witness of Greek civilization, because it reflected the Greek civilization in many fields including science, literature, philosophy, mythology and whatever the Greek people admired and worshipped. It recorded the progress of the Greek civilization in the form of art.
2) Architecture
It is always a wonder to see the ancient Greeks to have built so many miraculous buildings at the early times when construction machinery was under-developed. Parthenon (巴特浓神庙) was one of the brilliant examples. It was built in 438 B.C. It
was a temple 240 feet long and 110 feet wide, with many spectacular columns evenly spaced.
Parthenon in the twilight
Parthenon at daytime
There were three styles of Greek architecture, namely, the Doric style （多力克式）, the Ionic style（挨奥尼克式）and the Corinthian style（科林斯式）.
The Doric style is called the masculine style. This style was characterized by the qualities of being sturdy, powerful and severe-looking. It also showed a good sense of proportions and numbers.
The Ionic style is called the feminine style because it was characterized by its grace and elegance.
The Corinthian style is best known for its ornamental luxury.
The following picture is the Acropolis at Athens（雅典卫城）which was built in the 5th century B. C. for the purpose of praising Athens and holding religious activities.
The Acropolis at Athens
3) Sculpture
The ancient Greek sculptures were all connected with gods or goddesses who were presented as lifeless figures. Sculpture developed quickly in the 5th century B.C. the sculpture began to show beauty and strength of the people or things sculptured. A.Discus Thrower（铁饼运动员; 掷铁饼者）
The Discus Thrower was the work of Myron (米隆，date of birth unknown, but active 480-440 B. C.). T he sculpture shows the sculptor’s skill in presenting the thrower’s beauty, strength and balance. As a duplicate of the former bronze statue, this statue made of marble can clearly display even the muscles and ribs of the handsome young man.
Discus Thrower
B. Venus de Milo（米洛的维纳斯）
The following statue made of marble, 204 centimeters high, was discovered in Milo in 1820, now displayed in the Musée du Louvre in Paris. It was probably sculptured between 150 B.C. and 50 B.C. This statue with its broken arms displays
the beautiful countenance, the symmetry of body, the beauty of figure, the grace and loveliness of a female. It gradually became the symbol of love and beauty.
Venus de Milo
C. Laocoon
Laocoon, also named “the Laocoon and his sons”, about 184 centimeters high, sculptured in the 1st century B. C., unearthed in Rome in 1506, was the work of three sculptors, namely Agesandros(阿格桑德罗斯), his son Polydoros（波利多罗斯）and Athanodoros（阿塔诺多罗斯）.
Laocoon, a priest of Apollo in Troy, died from serpents’ bites because he was not believed when he warned the Trojans of the danger of pulling the wooden horse left by the Greek army into Troy.
The sculpture Laocoon depicts vividly the Laocoon’s desire to save his sons, twisted bodies, the fear and pain on their faces.
The story of Laocoon has always been the favorite subject for sculptors, writers, and critics.
Laocoon
4) Pottery
Pottery, unlike sculptures, was closely connected with daily needs in life at home and abroad.
There were mainly Black-figure paintings (700-600 B.C.) and Red-figure paintings (—50 B.C.).
The Black-figure paintings are paintings on pottery with red background and black figure. The red-figure paintings are paintings on pottery with black background and pink figure.
7. Influence and Contribution
The influence of Greek culture can be felt in many ways and fields. The ancient Greek culture made its greatest contribution to the world culture, especially in the Renaissance in Europe. The ancient Greeks made their never-dying contribution to the whole world with their invention of mathematics, philosophy, history writing and other things. They made the utmost achievements in all walks of life.
The Greeks’ spirit of innovation or invention and their effort to understand the world with daring spirit set a good example for the whole world.
In literature, the Greeks heavily influenced the later writers of many countries at all times. Many of the Greek works are studied, quoted and borrowed from by the later writers. The Greek literature has always been one the fountain heads for writers of different countries. To some writers, the Greek literature has been the inspiration for their creation. Many writers modeled on the Greek writers for their masterpieces.
II. Roman Culture
1. The Historical Background
The Romans also had their long civilization. In about 2000 B.C., different tribes from many places, among them a Latin race, entered the present Italy. In the 8th century B.C., they moved to Rome. Between the end of the 7th century and the end of the 6th century, tribes began to form city states. From the 5th century B.C., Rome
became more powerful and conquered many city-states. In 146 B.C., it conquered Corinth, which, together with the whole Greece became a province of Roman Empire. Through wars and diplomatic measures, the Roman Empire became a large empire covering many parts of Africa, Europe and Asia. In 27 B.C., the republic became an empire with Octavius taking power calling himself emperor with the title Augustus.
Beginning from the 3rd century, the empire became weaker and was often confronted with threats from invaders such as the Goths and the Huns. In 324, Constantine became the only ruler. He moved the capital to Byzantium which he renamed it as Constantinople. In 395, the empire was divided into the West Empire where people spoke Latin and the East Roman Empire (also called Byzantine Empire) where people spoke Greek. The capital of the East Roman Empire was Constantinople (the ancient Byzantium and modern Istanbul).
In the West Empire, economic crises appeared constantly. Foreign invasions came unceasingly. In 410, the Goths took Rome. In 452, the Huns took some part of Italy. In 455, the Vandals took Rome again. In 476, when the Goths took Rome again, they deposed the last emperor of the West Empire. This marked the ending of the West Roman Empire.
Around the 7th century, the East Roman Empire entered feudalism after it underwent a series of uprisings, invasions and reforms. In 1453, the East Roman Empire was ended by the Turks.
In the forming of the Roman Empire with a territory much larger than that of Greek Empire in times of Alexander the Great, the Romans relied on a strong army commonly called the Roman legions with a very well-organized discipline and battle tactics, quite confident in both their military and management capabilities. It swept over and occupied many places where they built roads and castles. There are still many traces of their roads in Britain even now.
In the development of the empire, the Romans also relied on the laws they made which benefited not only the rulers but also the common people. Many of the laws were codified which foreshadowed the modern law in the west. In this field, the Romans made greater contribution to the world civilization than the Greeks.
2. Literature
1) Roman Mythology
The Roman mythology is a rich legacy the Romans left for the world civilization and the world culture. It is the evidence of the Roman people’s imagination and wisdom which shows the wishes of the people in their stories of different kinds about different gods and common people. But it is said the Roman mythology is an imitation of the Greek mythology.
In the forming of the Roman mythology, the Romans also took over some the stories the Greeks invented. But the names changed. For example, Zeus, the main god, in Greek mythology, became Jupiter in Roman mythology. Aphrodite, goddess for love and beauty in Greek mythology, became Venus in Roman mythology. There are many other identified names and stories for example, Juno is for Hera, Mercury for Hermes, Mars for Ares, Cupid for Eros, to mention a few. That is why people often mention these two mythologies together as the Greco-Roman mythologies.
The Roman mythology is not only literature but also a kind of religious belief and culture. It is also like a law because in it each god or goddess has his or her own job and duty. It is the conveyor of culture with many philosophical implications. It also reveals the relationship between god and god, and between god and man with almost all gods or goddesses personified.
The Roman mythology, together with the Greek mythology, has greatly influenced not only people’s thinking but also people’s literary creation because we can almost always find archetypes in them. It is quite useful and necessary for students of English major to master the stories and their implications in them. Of course, knowledge of the Chinese mythologies and legends is also constructive in cultivating a cultural consciousness.
2) Prose
Two prose writers who were politicians at the same time were more active during this period and they should be specially mentioned here.