The Greek Way

The first thing one encounters when reading Edith Hamilton's 'The Greek Way' is her love and even exuberance for her subject. Her opening remarks describe the classical greek worldview; an ability to grasp the world as it is, and still find it to be beautiful. This grasp this people had on reality would allow them to create the pictorial art, the art of the stage, here not including the dialogue and the dinner/drinking party, all still enjoyed much in the same manner today as the greeks enjoyed them in 500 b.c.e. Plato and Socrates, and the way they experienced gentlemanly society, are highlighted as the crowning achievements of greek philosophy. It is the Ideal, Hamilton seems to say implicitly, that the greeks envisioned and carried forward philosophically, that would later influence western civilization in the way it did. Later, comparisons are drawn between Aeschylus and Shakespeare, where the influence of the former on the latter is striking by the examples Hamilton presents. Hamilton here defines trajedy, elucidates pathos, and the differences between the two. She goes on to draw similarities between Virgil and Sophocles in their poetry and subjects, a valid comparison, she makes it seem. Between this first and last, Herodotus is presented as a wide-eyed surprisingly objective first reporter who documents the cogitations and remarks of subjects as diverse as the delphic priestess and Cyrus the Great of Persia. Freedom is won in the face of the Persian threat, and is the singular hallmark of the classical greeks in Hamilton's view. It affects everything the personalities Hamilton brings to light accomplish. Every work of art, every stage play, every dialectical argument can be viewed either as being in the presence of, or having the lack of freedom and democracy. There is no question, Hamilton rightly defines the greatness of these greeks as a free, democratic people. But at the close of her book, Greece has become imperialistic and desires empire. Sophocles, the old conservative guardsman, documents poetically the zeitgeist of the former and current states of things, and a new era is dawning. But Hamilton wisely leaves off here, having presented a wonderful picture of a wonderful people during a wonderful time.

Edith Hamilton's book, The Greek Way, tells the amazing story of how the Greeks in the small city of Athens developed a new way of life in the western world around 500BC. Some of the highlights of her fascinating story are as follows: In a world where tyrants and the irrational played the chief role, the Greeks in the city of Athens believed in the supremacy of the mind in the affairs of men. The Athenians lived in a "reasonable" world because they used their reason on the world. For a brief period, extraordinary creative activity blossomed in Athens because the Athenians combined the clarity of reason with spiritual power. ? The ancient Egyptians left tombs (Pyramids) as their monuments to death. ? The ancient Athenians left theaters, statues, and plays as their monuments to life. The Athenians were different from most other ancient peoples because: ? The mountains of Greece helped to create a physically vigorous people who resisted submitting to despots. ? The Athenians looked at the world closely and had an intense desire to understand what they saw. They were the first "scientists" and delighted in making the obscure clear and finding system, order, and connection in the world. ? The Athenians loved reason, knowledge, and play. ? The Athenians were not oppressed by governments, religions or superstitions and were free to use their minds to examine whatever they wished. ? The Athenians, unlike many ancient or modern cultures, found the world a beautiful and delightful place in which to live and they found happiness in using their vital powers in the pursuit of excellence. ? In Greece, the mind and the spirit met on equal terms. Greek writing is plain writing, direct and matter-of-fact. It depends no more on ornament than does Greek architecture. For example, the following shows the same idea expressed both in the New Testament and by the Greek writer Aeschylus: ? In the New Testament Ask and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you: For everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. ? By the Greek writer Aeschylus Men search out God and searching find him. The Greek's universe is rational and well ordered without the worship of the powers of darkness. Socrates believed that goodness and truth were the fundamental realities, and that they were attainable. He believed that in the seeming futility of life there is a purpose which is good and that men can find it and help work it out. In a century or two, Greek scientists remade the ancient view of the universe. They leaped to the truth by an intuition, they saw a whole made up of related parts, and with the sweep of their vision the old world of hodge-podge and magic fell away and a world of order took its place.

Great book on the Greek mind and culture, not overly detailed and self explanatory, dealing with their art, writing, historians, playwrights, comic and tragic poets and religion. I think this is a great book to read along with H.D.F. Kitto's book, The Greeks. Hamilton goes into the Eastern way of quietistic retreat and denial of the external world of the Egyptians in the culture that worshiped the dead and interior spirit world, how they reduced to nothingness all that belongs to man and this world. Man is annihilated into the ways of nature. The Hindus also traveled within the interior selves, and in art, expressing themselves in decorative and elaborate art and writing. conglomeration of adornments ornaments and decorations. While the Greeks honored this world, this life, seeing the divinity and sacredness in this world, involving themselves in excellence, in the Olympic games, having gods and goddesses that resembled the beauty of humans and human existence. This was alien to mysticism and the vanishing of the self. Unlike other civilizations where the intellect belonged strictly to the priests, the Greeks as a whole pursued rationalism, truth, simplicity and meaning in existence. Life was lived to its fullest, but not in excess, as the two inscriptions over the Oracle of Apollo in Delphi reads as: "Know thyself" and "Nothing in excess." On page 20 "That which distinguishes the modern world from the ancient, and that which divides the West form the East, is the supremacy of mind in the affairs of men, and this came to birth in Greece and lived in Greece alone of all the ancient world. The Greeks were the first intellectualists. In a world where the irrational had played the chief role,they came forward as the protagonists of the mind." In art, in writing, in the gods, there was simplicity, lucid clarity that shied away from symbolism. This can be seen in the architecture and the poetry. The Gothic cathedral was raided in in awe of an Almighty God, humanity far below in reverence, while the Parthenon was raided in triumph, to express the beauty and the power and the splendor of man. Hamilton goes intuit the style and and aristocracy of the poet Pindar, into the freedom and amount of leisure in the culture for persons to seek out truth and rational development, the Symposium dinner party of the upper class and dinner party of Xenophon and working men and women. The writings of the extensive traveling and experiences of Herodotus and his attitude towards other cultures, both of this world and in religious allegorism. How the freedom allowed the comic poet Aristophanes to speak freely and question the intentions and actions of the most important figures without any back lash. In this she compares this to sixteen century England and Gilbert. A summary of the account of the historian Thucydides, the exiled general and his observance of a great democracy that defeated the Persians in a new era and later their power, strength and greed corrupt

After decades of cultural relativism and postmodern ignorance about the achievements of the classics, it is refreshing to see a bold defense of Western culture as initiated by the Greeks. Written about 1950, the author doesn't need to apologize for her points of view. Instead, she makes the case with forceful examples and deep erudition. I'll never forget Pericles and his generals discussing "fine points of literary criticism" before a battle. Examples like this enlighten the book from the beginning to the end and make great arguments for the author's theses. Apparently, it's a book about literature, but even those (like me) with a poor background on the topic and only a light interest on classical literature will enjoy the philosophical and historical aspects of the book.

A thouroughly enjoyable introduction to the beginnings of Western culture. Edith Hamilton brings to life the greatest minds dating back well before the birth of Christ. Only after reading this book did I begin to appreciate the complexities of the tragedy, a truly Greek innovation. If you love to learn you will love this book as you discover that the first stirrings of the logical acceptance of the world around us began with the courageous zest for life that the Greeks first invented. Highly recommended for those few remaining individuals who truly love to learn for the sake of learning.