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The People of Greece

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Ancient Greece was a country of small city-states whose people shared a common language and a set of religious beliefs. Before the country of Greece arrived onto the scene in the Mediterranean world, the men from other countries centered their thoughts around death. Even their monuments were in honor of death. The pyramids of Egypt and the ziggurats of Babylon are testimony to the grip the concept of death had over the people of these ancient civilizations.

The Greeks, however, viewed life as the most important concept in the world. Human life was honored and revered as a great wonder. The Greeks’ lifestyle is testimony to their belief system as they placed extreme importance upon play. Greece was the first country to engage in this foreign concept. They are known even today for being the originators of the Olympic Games, which serve as a constant reminder of their emphasis and excitement for living.

The art of the Greeks is also witness to the pleasure they received from the figure of the human body. They viewed man as unique and most important over other creatures because he possessed what they termed logos. The Greek word “logos” meant “word”, particularly a word through which a thought is expressed.

The Greeks were also renowned for their success in the sciences, particularly mathematics, science, medicine, and philosophy. They held firmly to man’s power of reason and were the first people to claim that the world was indeed knowable. The Greeks held to the belief that the world was something to be understood and esteemed. By grasping the nature of the universe and the nature of man, a Greek trusts he has the secret to grasping man’s individual place in the scheme of the universe.

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