Classical Greek Philosophy & Theatre – Quick Review

Socrates

  • Viewed the psyche as the seat of intelligence & character; immortal and unchanging
  • Challenged non-democratic rule ⇒ tried and executed by the tyrants
  • Left no writings; teachings survive through student Plato

Plato

  • Idealist: believed in pure, perfect Ideas that exist beyond the physical world
  • Psyche is eternal, identical from birth to death
  • Learning via mental exercises elevates understanding
  • Motivated by injustice of Socrates’ death

The Ideal Republic (Plato’s “Republic”)

  • Only the most highly educated men should rule
  • Sensory arts (music, visual art) discouraged
  • Sex permitted solely for procreation
  • Foundation for later political theory

Allegory of the Cave

  • Humans like prisoners seeing only shadow-images cast by a hidden reality
  • True “Forms” exist behind appearances; ordinary perception grasps mere shadows

Greek Afterlife Concepts

  • Multiple destinations: Underworld ruled by Hades, Elysian Fields\text{Elysian Fields} for heroes, etc.
  • No strict Christian-style heaven/hell distinction

Symposium

  • Gatherings where Socrates, Plato & friends debated philosophy; recorded by Plato

Greek Theatre Basics

  • Flourished in Hellenistic period; origin of terms comedy & tragedy

Comedy

  • Plot ends with protagonist’s success (not necessarily humorous)
  • Often satirized foreigners & women (racist/sexist by modern standards)
  • Aristophanes: best-preserved comic playwright
    • 4444 original plays; 1111 survive
    • “Lysistrata”: Athenian & Spartan women withhold sex to force peace in the Peloponnesian War\text{Peloponnesian War} (modern adaptation: Spike Lee’s “Chi-Raq”)

Tragedy

  • Centered on conflict, death, and protagonist’s downfall
  • Basis for most surviving dramatic works