Foreseeing the future, pain, drugs and alcohol. It all sounds like elements in the plot of a Hollywood movie. These elements, however, are not of a movie, but of the past of a society. “The Pueblos of New Mexico”, an essay written by Ruth Benedict talks of these different societies. Dionysian, derived from the Greek god of wine Dionysus, perceives values through “the annihilation of the ordinary bounds and limits of existence” (517). The Dionysian culture holds values that approve recklessness, glorification, states of emotional excess, and a general passion to break through the usual routine of everyday life. This society is one that has very similar characteristics to the societies of today. The frequent use of drugs and alcohol, the desire to foresee the future, and the constant self-inflicted pain were just some of the things that the Dionysian cultures believed in.
“The most conspicuous… is probably their practice of obtaining supernatural power in a dream or vision…” (519). The Dionysian cultures believed that they could go on quests to achieve a vision of the future. Today, those quests are no farther than the telephone, advertisements on television, or on your computer screen. Everyday, people are introduced to different experiences where they can “find out their own future”. Societies have always wanted to know their futures. Recently though, the urgency to know one’s own future has increased dramatically. With the technological advances that have taken place in our society, fortune telling has become more apparent. Societies are feeling increasingly out of control of their own lives, and are going to these fortunetellers to feel more self-assured. “On the western plains they believed that when the vision ...
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..., each of the Dionysian societies found it as a consequential part of their every-day lives.
Throughout time, there has always been a society that resembles that of the Dionysian societies. The Indian tribes in New Mexico sought out visions from gods on their vision quests, tortured themselves in order to see their omens from the gods, and often used and abused the drugs and alcohol that they found around them in nature. Today, millions of people around the world seek the knowledge of their own futures, hoping to get a diminutive speck of control back into their lives. Gangs brutally batter their own members in an initiation, just so they can be a part of something, and ravers experience drugs and dance until dawn. Although the Dionysian culture seems like it is hopeless, the assurance that one day society will learn from its mistakes is a hope for all mankind.
The Chi Omega Greek Theater was constructed as a gift to the University commemorating Chi
In The Odyssey the ancient Greeks had a sense of explorations, independence and love life. They were skillful and wise men and women. They are depicted as courageous and adventurous heroes and warriors. Under all those beautiful characteristic illustrated in The Odyssey, under that shell that it portrayed, the ancient Greeks had many fears. They feared the sea, Cyclops, scared of scandals, death and people with different cultures. Ancient Greeks had all these fear because it turns out that they fear everything that could take their life. Life is a big deal for ancient Greeks, they love and appreciate their life and would do anything to protect it. Even though everything that could cause death was terrifying for the ancient Greeks, the scariest thing was the meddlesome of the gods.
...t is also important to notice that every character seems to have wide eyes and dark circles drawn under their eyes. This is perhaps one of the most important aspects because the eyes show the underlying theme of complete inebriation. This in turn, proves the impact that Dionysus had on his followers as well as those who he conquered. Wine brought great power to its creator, and made a lasting impact on history. With these devices of communication, we are able to see that the follower wanted to capture Dionysus’s legacy by creating a sarcophagus of remembrance in his honor.
All throughout The Odyssey there are scenes of good and bad xenia, or hospitality. It can be seen that hospitality is extremely important in the Greek culture, both how someone treats their guests and how the guests treat the host. A closer look chronologically into the good, then bad examples will show how one acts affects the actions that are brought upon them when they either follow or disobey Zeus' Law.
The Differences between Apollo and Dionysus are not difficult to see. Though both Gods are associated wi...
The rise of the Greeks was a revolutionary step away from this system. Although Greek society was also greatly influenced by their polytheistic religion, they took an intellectual approach to the study of the man-nature relationship. Instead of acce...
Stressed greatly in ancient Greek culture, hospitality is evident throughout Homer’s writing, which reflects and expresses many different value systems within it. For example, when in the cave of the Cyclops, Polyphemus, Odysseus confronts him by saying, “we therefore humbly pray to show us some hospitality and otherwise make us such presents as visitors may reasonably expect” (92). To the Greeks, hospitality was very important, to the point that it was an expectation and not just a quality as it is in today’s culture. If you feared Zeus and the gods, you were to show hospitality. In opposition to this, Odysseus’ request for hospitality is followed by the Cyclops stating, “you are a fool…we Cyclopes do not care about Zeus or any of your blessed gods for we are ever so much stronger than they” (92/93). In accordance to this, the greatest reason for one to show hospitality was because they believe...
Home was a prevalent concept in Ancient Greece. Not only was there a goddess of the hearth and home, Hestia, but hospitality towards others was highly stressed. Home was regarded as a place to escape from chaos in the outside world. Homer and Euripides in The Odyssey and Medea, respectively, use the motif of home to show the difference in an individual’s public manner versus their personal, more natural manner. This difference is caused by the different levels of comfort individuals have in different settings. Specifically, the two works portray the difference through experience of the characters, mistrust developed towards others, and the maintenance of dual identities.
When it comes to hospitality, Greeks stand atop the list of all cultures for their generosity and politeness towards strangers. “Philoxenia” is the Greek word for “the love of strangers”. Philoxenia is demonstrated in several different cases in Homer’s The Odyssey. According to Greek customs, hospitality is respected by the immortal gods. If the Greek code of hospitality is not performed correctly, or not performed at all, the consequences may be very severe, gods may unleash their wrath to whoever does not follow this tradition of thoughtfulness. Homer suggests both positive and negative commentary on his own world through the examples of hospitalities that provide The Odyssey.
Alexander the Great states, “Remember upon the conduct of each depends the fate of all.” In this way, Alexander shows the belief of fate in ancient times. By looking at this mindset, the beliefs of these ancient people can be seen. These ancient people also had a strong belief in the omens and prophecies given by the gods. In both Greek and Roman times, omens and prophecies structured the lives of these ancient people through their tradition, stories, and way of living.
For example the treatment of slaves. Slaves in many societies were people who were treated poorly, whipped for not doing work, had very little possessions, and treated with disrespect. In contrast, Homer displays a world where slaves are treated with dignity, even though they are lower down in society’s hierarchy. (Slavery Ancient Greece, n.d.) The Odyssey also shows how mortals and the gods exhibit many similar attributes and failings. Homers uses these to give his world of The Odyssey a new meaning, one that may have lessons for today. To not be caught in the trap of jealously, greed and lust, and to treat people who are not as ‘powerful’ with some respect. This is a core message in The Odyssey and which is still relevant
There are many traditions and values that the people of Ancient Greece followed very closely. These acts, such as, hospitality and respect for one’s peers are usually overlooked by gods and goddesses. The people are expected follow these traditions or they may feel wrath from a god or goddess.
Even though the new society digresses greatly from today’s, were the ideas promoted really all that bad? It could be argued either way. One side may argue that there is nothing really wrong with continuously physically pleasuring yourself. After all, if “everybody belongs to everybody else”, there would be a lot less fighting. If technology did not allow for any of the consequences associated with drugs, then what would be so wrong about them? What if you did not have to go through life behaving yourself, because the concept of having to get into heaven simply did not exist. Would it not be nice to not have to deal with all the pain and grieving death brings, to be able to simply accept it and move on?
Many diverse cultures are found in every corner of the world. Every culture is defined by its traditions and values. The film “The Odyssey,” depicts the culture of the ancient Greeks where it illustrates the life of a man, Odysseus, who has gone on a journey just to get back to his kingdom. Many values and traditions could be identified through the path of the journey. Some elements that are found important to the Greeks are the music, the religion, and the duty to the kingdom.
While is a common conception that pre-modern societies are primitive compared to their modern counterpart, this is not often the case, theses societies have complex systems within their society especially within their spirituality and religion. It is this complexity that has allowed aspects of pre-modern societies to evolve and adapt into modern societies. Myths, rituals and sorcery have been terms to describe the activities of pre-modern societies, but these activities have also been found to exist within modern society as well. This essay will further discuss the connections between pre-modern and modern societies that has allowed for myths, rituals and sorcery to exist in the modern societies.