Living in Greece and understanding Greek history: Some people who have traveled to Greece have said, "It's boring, it's just looking at rocks."
Indeed, with civilization from over 3,000 years ago remaining to this day, there is not much left but stones. However, the past glory and the stories behind these stones are magnificent and extraordinary. The ancient Greeks used stone to leave behind an eternal monument for themselves.
Before going to Greece, I did some historical homework—I bought a few books and watched some videos. After arriving in Greece, when standing in front of the ruins, its glorious history and magnificent original appearance emerged in my mind, making one feel awe and reverence for these extraordinary stones unconsciously.
Although ancient Greece was not listed among the four ancient civilizations (Ancient Babylon, Ancient Egypt, Ancient China, and Ancient India), the achievements created by the ancient Greeks in philosophy, history, architecture, science, literature, drama, sculpture, and other fields have influenced the entire Western world and even global civilization, and still affect our thinking and behavior today. Many things we take for granted come from the wisdom of the ancient Greeks.
The ancient Greeks created terms such as "politics," "actor," "architect," "hero," "pagan," "museum," "physics," "atom," and "economics," and one-third of English words are derived from Ancient Greek.
The architecture of the ancient Greeks has had a lasting influence on modern urban architecture; Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian marble column structures can be found in major metropolises around the world today.
The ancient Greeks pioneered the Olympic Games. The modern Olympic Games, held every four years, are no longer just a competitive event, but a celebration. Furthermore, the "Olympic spirit" has been derived from the Olympic Games to inspire young people to pursue friendship, solidarity, fair play, and mutual understanding.
The ancient Greeks created comedies and tragedies, which featured chorus accompaniment, curtains, backgrounds, and masks, forming the prototype of Western drama. What is most impressive is that in urban ruins everywhere, one can often see ancient theaters, indicating that watching plays was an indispensable part of the lives of ancient Greeks. Because of this, archaeologists often use the size of ancient theaters to estimate the population of the city.
The sculpture art of ancient Greece is fascinating, with lifelike figure sculptures. The male figures are robust and muscular; the female figures are plump with soft lines. The texture of the clothing on the sculptures is rendered with realistic softness.
The ancient Greek Archimedes discovered "buoyancy" (Archimedes' principle) while bathing; he also demonstrated the principle of the lever, and his most famous quote is: "Give me a fulcrum, and I shall move the world."
The ancient Greeks founded philosophy. Socrates was one of the greatest philosophers and the teacher of the philosopher Plato, while the philosopher Aristotle was a student of Plato.
The ancient Greeks invented democracy, believing that in matters involving the interests of the majority, decisions should be made legally by all formal members. For example, in the city-state of Athens, all male citizens aged 18 and over formed a citizen assembly, which met every ten days. Regardless of wealth, everyone had the right to speak and vote by a show of hands. According to legend, to ensure that enough citizens attended the meeting, someone would use a long rope covered with red powder to circle the crowd in the market and drive them to the meeting. If anyone was found to have red powder on them but had not attended the meeting, they would be punished for evading their responsibilities.
Although the history of ancient Greece ended in 30 BC, more than 2,000 years later, looking around today, one can always find things and objects related to ancient Greece.