The Funeral Oration of Pericles

917 Words2 Pages

We can learn several things from the “Funeral Oration of Pericles“. Two of these things are, the Athenians respect for their warrior class and how the Athenians were exceedingly proud of their city and its customs. The Athenians respected the warrior class and placed them among the top members of their society. They were seen as the top portion of their classes. They are classified as heroes or idols. The Athenians are extremely proud of their city and its traditions. To the people of Athens their country was at the top and there was no other country that could top them off. The purpose of the funeral oration is not only to respect the departed but, but also to instill the citizen’s national pride and a passion to fight for Athens.

The oration is a eulogy that focuses on the greatness of Athens and her ancestors. The eulogy is given by a member of the family, in most cases the son. This speech was required by the law to have some necessary components. The speech had to talk about the lives of both the deceased and the ancestors of the deceased. At the end of the eulogy Pericles has told about the soldiers and the ancestors of Athens but it seems that he is not sure if he has been able to get through to the citizens of Athens. “My task is now finished. I have performed it to the best of my ability, and in words, at least, the requirements of the law are now satisfied.“ (Thucydides, 109) The speech told the significant life the departed lived and the great things they ...

Show More
Related

  • Similarities Between Hebrew Bible And The Iliad

    2071 Words  | 5 Pages

    For this reason, the ancient Greeks believed that it was very important to give a deceased loved one of a proper burial. If a proper burial was not performed, the soul of the person would be doomed to walk the land of the living for eternity. An example of this is seen when Patroclus’ fellow warriors fought to retrieve his body for Achilles after he was killed by Zeus and Hector, because they knew that Achilles loved Patroclus like a brother. Atrides yelled, “Ajax! Hurry, my friend, this way--fight for dead Patroclus!

    Read More

  • Gorgias Bias In The Gettysburg Address

    1418 Words  | 3 Pages

    Perhaps unbeknownst to him, Lincoln engaged in the two thousand-year-old tradition of epitaphios logos, or a particular form of Greek eulogizing. Lincoln’s eulogy appears to consider aspects of Gorgias’, another example of epitaphios logos. Both eulogies use similar themes and diction. Furthermore, these two eulogies are alike in purpose; both Lincoln and Gorgias seek to honor the dead as heroes and assuage the living. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the connections of the two eulogies that allow a cogent comparison.

    Read More

  • Comparison of Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address" and Pericles' "Funeral Oration"

    854 Words  | 2 Pages

    Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” and Pericles “Funeral Oration” are both speeches that clearly portray similar and diverse components.

    Read More

  • Civil War Funeral Orations

    603 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Peloponnesian War was fought from 431-409 BC. It was a civil war between the Greek city-states and was lead by Sparta and it’s allies against the dominating Athenian government. The Athenian leader, Pericles, was a learned scholar and an ingenious military general. His speeches were known for their ability to motivate and give courage to a crowd whether it was to his soldiers in the final moments right before a battle or to a gathering in the streets of Athens. After the first few battles of the Peloponnesian War, Pericles was asked to give the funeral oration for those that were slain in defense of Athens. He did not offer his condolences to the families of those that died, but he offered them comfort. He did this because the men that died in those battles did not do so in vain, for dying in defense of one’s city-state had nothing to do with vanity in the eyes of the ...

    Read More

  • Edgar Allan Poe's The Cask of the Amontillado

    1509 Words  | 4 Pages

    “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe is a story of revenge on the outside, but when on the inside, it is something deeper. His stories are dark and sometimes, like in “The Cask of Amontillado,” deadly. Poe’s main focus in “The Cask of Amontillado” is revenge, but if examined more closely, the irony that is present foreshadows the end result for Fortunato. In “The Cask of Amontillado” the Montresor is planning to seek revenge on Fortunato for “the thousand injuries.” The revenge results in the live burial of Fortunato, the actual reasoning is left a mystery, but this story goes to prove that things that one does can always come back ...

    Read More

  • marriage and funeral in ancient greece

    2321 Words  | 5 Pages

    Marriage in Classical Athens was inevitable. It was a part of life. Everyone had to get married, just as everyone had to someday face death. Although most people would not see a connection between marriage and death, the Greeks did. Both define an irreversible physical change—the loss of virginity and the loss of life. This idea of loss, rebirth, and renewal are present in both wedding and funeral. This is evident in the way wedding and funeral ceremonies complement each other in character and content. Both ceremonies are interwoven with ritual meaning and overlapping rites.

    Read More

  • A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

    1049 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...p to humanity. He once dared to venture to the depths of darkness, where all hope of ever returning would be lost, but he was saved by the the Spirits who helped him realize that he was terrorizing himself. In the end, Scrooge lived with a bigger smile, louder laugh, and jollier step than anybody else; it was a happy ending. Had Scrooge not changed, it would have ended on a dark note with many forgotten deaths and unfortunate stories of dead bodies. Everyone has a choice. Which path of Scrooge will you take? There is no way to limit what society gives us and what problems we are presented in the beginning, but they way we handle and solve these problems become the basis of our everyday lives all the way to our last breath. Every moment in between will cherished as if the last and no person will ever go unfullfilled.

    Read More

  • A Funeral Eulogy For A Roman Wife

    626 Words  | 2 Pages

    A pretty face gets old. A nice body will change. But a good woman with an amazing personality will always be a good woman. Life is about the good person you are. No one will remember you for what things you had, but how you made them feel. A man or husband usually expects a woman with amazing qualities and virtues. The role and duties of a woman and wife in the past and the present have changed significantly. People say that a real man respects and values the virtues of the woman he loves. In A Funeral Eulogy for a Roman Wife this is noticeable. The man wrote this eulogy hundreds of years ago about his wife and the admirable qualities, loyalty and self sacrificing love that she had. This eulogy, is a true summary of what it is like to be a Roman wife.

    Read More

  • Comparing Pericles's Funeral Oration

    1103 Words  | 3 Pages

    For Pericles, Athenian values are realized through culture and “daily devotion.” He claims that Athenian citizens obey both “the laws themselves” and “agreed-on social values (which need no specific legislation),” not requiring legislation to uphold their values. Accordingly, Pericles views exceptionalism as intrinsic to Athenians. Boasting about the city, Pericles questions “how else did she become great but by this genius in her citizens?” A recommitment to civic values, therefore, is simple to Pericles: Athenians are exceptional at the moment of his speech, and must simply continue their past conduct in order to achieve future

    Read More

  • Working Life In A Christmas Carol

    1763 Words  | 4 Pages

    Stave 5, Scrooge has changed! He wakes up, and immediately begins to laugh. He is completely alive and a new person. He goes to dinner at his nephew’s house, and even raises Bob Cratchit’s salary. He becomes a second father to Tiny Tim, and even starts giving money to the poor. Scrooge is now a humble, kind, and thoughtful man.

    Read More

  • Socrates´ Death

    1792 Words  | 4 Pages

    In 399 BC, Socrates, the great philosopher in ancient Greece, was put to death under the hands of his Athenian fellow-citizens to whom he had a strong attachment, after a final vote with over two-thirds of jurymen against him. We cannot experience the situation where Socrates gave his final argument in the court of law. From Plato’s Apology, we admire Socrates’ brilliant rhetoric and rigorous logic, while at the same time feel pity for him and indignant with those ruthless jurymen. However, the question of what exactly caused his death and why was Socrates, such a remarkable thinker sentenced to death in the very society that valued democracy the most is not easy and straightforward to answer. There are multiple elements involved that finally caused this tragedy in which “a person of high moral principle is confronted step by step with a situation from which there is no escape” (38). First of all, the moral principle and belief in divinity held by Socrates are inconsistent with those of the Athenian society, implying the very crimes charged upon Socrates were not completely groundless. Secondly, the imperfect juridical system of Athens played a role in causing this tragedy. What’s more, Socrates himself, could have offered better defense in the court, also had a hand in his own death by his stubbornness regarding to his own interpretation of wisdom and piety. His rebuttal, though brilliant and insightful, was not persuasive enough to move the fellow-citizens for his wrong approach and sophistry in his cross-examination on Meletus.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Sex Trafficking

    1450 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sex trafficking is the exploitation of women and children within national or across international borders, for the purposes of

    Read More

  • Last Days Of Socrates

    2263 Words  | 5 Pages

    Imagine the time just after the death of Socrates. The people of Athens were filled with questions about the final judgment of this well-known, long-time citizen of Athens. Socrates was accused at the end of his life of impiety and corruption of youth. Rumors, prejudices, and questions flew about the town. Plato experienced this situation when Socrates, his teacher and friend, accepted the ruling of death from an Athenian court. In The Last Days of Socrates, Plato uses Socrates’ own voice to explain the reasons that Socrates, though innocent in Plato’s view, was convicted and why Socrates did not escape his punishment as offered by the court. The writings, “Euthyphro,” “The Apology,” “Crito,” and “Pheado” not only helped the general population of Athens and the friends and followers of Socrates understand his death, but also showed Socrates in the best possible light. They are connected by their common theme of a memoriam to Socrates and the discussion of virtues. By studying these texts, researchers can see into the culture of Athens, but most important are the discussions about relationships in the book. The relationships between the religion and state and individual and society have impacted the past and are still concerns that are with us today.

    Read More

  • Significance of Pericles' Death

    1280 Words  | 3 Pages

    The death of Pericles was a significant event in the course of the Peloponnesian War; however, even without Pericles' leadership the Athenian Assembly had countless opportunities to prevent their loss and chose not to take them. The fickleness and inefficiency of democracy ('the mob') allowed the Athenians to be easily influenced and therefore electing populists such as Cleon, Lysicles and Hyperbolus into dominant leadership roles. Election, via democratic means, of such populists, meant that the Athenians would take a much more aggressive approach to the war and therefore abandon the policies that Pericles had previously established. So in turn, democracy the institution for which the Athenians fought tirelessly to protect, rather than the death of Pericles, ironically became the dominant factor influencing the final outcome of this Ancient Greek civil war.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Literary Devices In The Cask Of Amontillado

    917 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor sets out on a vengeful mission that will end Fortunato’s life in an untimely fate. Montresor appeals to Fortunato’s love for wine to tempt the unsuspecting fellow to his impending doom. While Montresor tricks the foolish Fortunato frightfully, it is ultimately Fortunato’s pride that leads to his demise in the crypt. Poe uses several literary devices to foreshadow this murderous exploit of Montresor. Through the use of irony, symbolism, and imagery, the story entices readers to delve into the relationships and differences between Montresor and Fortunato.

    Read More

More about The Funeral Oration of Pericles

Open Document