Assignment

After reading chapter 3 & 4 on Greek Civilization, including the primary sources, answer the following question in essay form (1,200-1,800 words). Be aware that there are several parts to the question. Be sure to make at least one reference to the primary source documents in the chapter readings.

Choose A or B:

A) Discuss the cultural and geographic reasons for the rise of the polis. What were the major differences in the way Athenian and Spartan society was organized? Did such differences make war between these states inevitable? What were the effects of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC) on Greek society? Briefly explain how the events of the 4th Century B.C.E. Greek world allow the Kingdom of Makedonia to gain influence and power.

B) W.H. Auden once remarked that "Had Greek Civilization never existed, we would never have become fully conscious, which is to say that we would never have become, for better or for worse, fully human." What was it about Greek civilization that other generations have admired and attempted to emulate? What was the Greek contribution to the West and to the Western intellectual tradition? Does this quotation unfairly undermine the contributions of non-Western Civilizations?