. The Greeks developed systems that represented many new ideas in government and philosophy. What were these new ideas, and why did they emerge from Greece? How did the work of men such as Herodotus, Plato, and Aristotle represent the key ideas behind Greek civilization?
the
Socratic principle of thinking things through by means of skeptical questioning, rather than assuming on the basis of authority or faith, became a recurrent strand in classical Greek thinking and education and was part of its heritage to later societies. Socrates' great pupil, Plato, accentuated the positive somewhat more strongly in suggesting that human reason could approach an understanding of the perfect forms - the absolutely True, Good, and
Beautiful - that
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One of the hallmarks of GREEK CIVILIZATION was the polis, or city-state. The city-states were small, independent communities which were male-dominated and bound together by race. What this means is that membership in the polis was hereditary and could not be passed on to someone outside the citizen family. The citizens of any given polis were an elite group of people – slaves, peasants, women and resident aliens were not part of the body of citizens.
When the philosopher Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) came to discuss the origins of the polis in his book POLITICS in the early 4th century B.C. he suggested that "it is necessary for the citizens to be of such a number that they knew each other's personal qualities and thus can elect their officials and judge their fellows in a court of law sensibly."
ns. In such a society – the society of the polis – all citizens were intimately and directly involved in politics, justice, military service, religious ceremonies, intellectual discussion, athletics and artistic pursuits. To shirk one's responsibilities was not only rare but reprehensible in the eyes of the Greek citizen. Greek citizens did not have rights, but duties. A citizen who did not fulfill his duties was socially