The Hellenic Period Essays - Ancient Greek Philosophers, Parmenides

The Hellenic Period During the Greek Golden Age, art and philosophy expressed hellenic "weltanschauung", their unique outlook on the world and way of life. Through the works of artists, playwrights, and philosophers, one can see both sides of the conflicted systems of the world, such as; good vs. evil, order vs. chaos, stability vs. flux, relativism vs. absolutism and balance and harmony. The Greeks were materialists. They adopted the philosophical doctrine which says that physical matter is the only reality in the universe; everything else, including thought, feeling, mind and will can be explained in terms of physical laws. Their materialism was expressed in an excessive regard for worldly, beautiful material things and concerns. They used their art to show the glories of humanity and man. The sculptors of the Golden Age aimed to create graceful, strong and perfectly formed figures. Their art showed natural positions and thoughtful expressions rather than abstract art forms. Their standards of order a nd balance became standards for classical art in western civilization. The Greeks were proud of their temples and other architecture, made to honor the gods and beautify the polis (city-state). Their famous architectural styles were the heavy Doric columns and the slender scrolled Ionian columns. The Parthenon, the Greek temple for the goddess Athena, is a impeccable example of symmetry and proportion. The sides of the Parthenon give an optical illusion of perfect balance on all sides. Their desire for balance in art and architecture represents the balance of the world; order and moderation are expressed in the simplicity of lines and shapes. The resulting overall structure works together to achieve harmony. In ancient Greece, public drama was more than entertainment. It was a form of public education. It dealt with issues of importance to the people, such as; the authority of the leaders, the power of the people, questions of justice, morality, wars, peace, the duties of the gods , family life and city living. Aeschylus wrote about the furies and how they punished man for wrongdoings. This shows that he believed that chaos would be punished because order (and law) is the ideal state. Sophocles is best known for his plays of Oedipus. Those plays dealt with family and civic loyalty. The Greeks emphasized, particularly in their plays, the importance of loyalty as a goal to strive for. We learn a lot about Greek views through their philosophy, which literally means the love of knowledge. The Greeks educated through a series of questions and answers, in order to better teach about life and the universe. The first philosopher was Thales. He believed in absolutism and eternal matter. He said that water was the original matter and that without it, there would be no life. Parmenides stated that stability and permanence were the underlying conditions of the universe. He believed that change is only an illusion and that one's senses can only grasp superficial realities of change. Heroditus argued with Parmenides saying that change was the basic condition of reality. He further claimed that all permanence was false. Thus he saw things as naturally being in flux rather than a stable state. Democritus argued with both Parmenides and Heroditus. He insisted that there is nothing spiritual and that only matter existed. He then went on to say that everything is made of little invisible particles, hooked up in different arrangements. He was an atomist. The Greek philosophers went on to question the nature of being and the meaning of life. Pythagoras was the first metaphysicist, one who studies beyond physical existence. He believed in a separation between spirit and body, an opposition between good and evil and between discord and harmony. In the 5th century, the Greeks learned from Sophists, who believed that the views of society are standards and the sole measurement of good, truth, justice and beauty. Protagoras was a sophist. He said that, "man is t he measure of all things." He believed in a constant flux, and that nothing is absolutely right or wrong, but subject to change. His view is much like that held by Parmenides. The philosophers then asked a question such as; what would happen if things that were wrong were seen by society as acceptable? What, for

Why Nations Go to War essays

Why Nations Go to War essays In Why Nations Go To War, Dr. Joseph Stoessinger explains eight cases in which why nations do go to war. The chapters read about the Vietnam War and Kosovo explain why these nations went to war and what mistakes hurt each nation. Stoessinger explains that some problems, such as political and economical issues, have hurt the outcome of each war. The war in Vietnam started out as a struggle between France and Communist leader, Ho Chi Minh. President Truman was the first of five presidents to lead the United States through Vietnam. At first, the president thought of the war as Frances problem, but soon wanted France to stay in the war with the help of an aid program. President Truman would end up not sending committed combat troops into the war, but would end his presidency with America paying almost one-third of the total cost of the French war effort. President Eisenhower picked up the presidency, but had China on the side of Ho Chi Minh. Eisenhower increased military aid to France and had America paying over one-half the cost of the war. The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was Frances last chance in Indochina. Eisenhower was informed that, without American intervention, Indochina would be lost. French involvement in the war was ended with the Geneva Accords and the creation of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization; the United States started their presence in Indochina. Ho Chi Minh would have peaceful coexistence with the Soviet Union and China, and would advance to win the general election of 1956 winning him all of Vietnam. The SEATO was created to prevent further territory in Asia to falling under Communist control. The SEATO disrupted the results of the Geneva Accords and also decided to consider South Vietnam a separate state. Ho Chi Minh considered this a violation of the Accords and also believed the Americans were tr ying to hurt him in the political arena. The war bet...

Family Business essay on Estate planning Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Family Business on Estate planning - Essay Example For this purpose, the article Updating Systems Concepts in Family Businesses: A Focus on Values, Resource Flows, and Adaptability, which has been written by Brian Distelberg and Ritch L. Sorenson, has been selected in order to understand the issues surrounding family business and estate planning. Pollard Banknote Income Fund was founded in the year 1907. Located in Winnipeg, Canada, the organization started off as a commercial printing organization. During the seventies, it entered security printing and concentrated on the manufacturing of stocks, bonds, government bonds, etc. In the eighties, it again entered a new market and concentrated on producing lotteries for the government. For this purpose, Lawrence Pollard, the president of the organization, â€Å"mortaged everything he owned. He borrowed $5 million in 1985 to acquire the technology needed to turn his 77-year-old printing house into a lottery ticket printer† (Distelberg and Sorenson, 69). His organization further grew when his sons entered the family business, which is currently an international company. The business remained in the family. In the year 1947, Lawrence had joined the family business. He was invited by his father, who worked collaboratively with his two elder twin brothers (Distelberg and Sorenson, 69). Pollard worked hard in order to ensure that the organization flourished and grew in the advertisement industry as one of the leading printing companies. In the year 2005, â€Å"the organization went public and this strategy was based on strengthening the company’s commitment to the lottery industry and enhances its ability to continue to expand and compete† (Distelberg and Sorenson, 70). The control and power of the business still remains in the hands of the Pollard family. From research it is evident that a family business that remains in the family is the product of hard work, constant struggle,