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How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by daylae(m): 8:34am On Jul 23, 2014 |
The culture and legends of ancient Greece have a remarkably long legacy in the modern language of education, politics, philosophy, art and science. Classical references from thousands of years ago continue to appear. But what was the origin of some of these ideas? 1. Was there ever really a Trojan Horse? The story of the Trojan Horse is first mentioned in Homer's Odyssey, an epic song committed to writing around 750BC, describing the aftermath of a war at Troy that purportedly took place around 500 years earlier. After besieging Troy (modern-day Hisarlik in Turkey) for 10 years without success, the Greek army encamped outside the city walls made as if to sail home, leaving behind them a giant wooden horse as an offering to the goddess Athena. The Trojans triumphantly dragged the horse within Troy, and when night fell the Greek warriors concealed inside it climbed out and destroyed the city. Archaeological evidence shows that Troy was indeed burned down; but the wooden horse is an imaginative fable, perhaps inspired by the way ancient siege- engines were clothed with damp horse-hides to stop them being set alight by fire-arrows. 2. Homer is one of the great poets of ancient Greek legends. Did he actually exist? Not only is the Trojan Horse a colourful fiction, the existence of Homer himself has sometimes been doubted. It's generally supposed that the great epics which go under Homer's name, the Iliad and Odyssey, were composed orally, without the aid of writing, some time in the 8th Century BC, the fruit of a tradition of oral minstrelsy stretching back for centuries. While the ancients had no doubt that Homer was a real bard who composed the monumental epics, nothing certain is known about him. All we do know is that, even if the poems were composed without writing and orally transmitted, at some stage they were written down in Greek, because that is how they have survived. 3. Was there an individual inventor of the alphabet? The date attributed to the writing down of the Homeric epics is connected to the earliest evidence for the existence of Greek script in the 8th Century BC. The Greeks knew that their alphabet (later borrowed by the Romans to become the western alphabet) was adapted from that of the Phoenicians, a near-eastern nation whose letter-sequence began "aleph bet".
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Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by daylae(m): 8:39am On Jul 23, 2014 |
The fact that the adaptation was uniform throughout Greece has suggested that there was a single adapter rather than many. Greek tradition named the adapter Palamedes, which may just mean "clever man of old". Palamedes was also said to have invented counting, currency, and board games. The Greek letter-shapes came to differ visually from their Phoenician progenitors - with the current geometrical letter-shapes credited to the 6th Century mathematician Pythagoras. 4. Did Pythagoras invent Pythagoras' theorem? Or did he copy his homework from someone else? It is doubtful whether Pythagoras (c. 570-495BC) was really a mathematician as we understand the word. Schoolchildren still learn his so-called theorem about the square on the hypotenuse (a2+b2 =c2). But the Babylonians knew this equation centuries earlier, and there is no evidence that Pythagoras either discovered or proved it. In fact, although genuine mathematical investigations were undertaken by later Pythagoreans, the evidence suggests that Pythagoras was a mystic who believed that numbers underlie everything. He worked out, for instance, that perfect musical intervals could be expressed by simple ratios. 5. What made the Greeks invent money? Was it trade or their "psyche"? It may seem obvious to us that commercial imperatives would have driven the invention of money. But human beings conducted trade for millennia without coinage, and it's not certain that the first monetised economy in the world arose in ancient Greece simply in order to facilitate such transactions. The classicist Richard Seaford has argued that the invention of money emerged from deep in the Greek psyche. It is tied to notions of reciprocal exchange and obligation which pervaded their societies; it reflects philosophical distinctions between face-value and intrinsic value; and it is a political instrument, since the state is required to act as guarantor of monetary value. Financial instruments and institutions - coinage, mints, contracts, banking, credit and debt - were being developed in many Greek cities by the 5th Century BC, with Athens at the forefront. But one ancient state held the notion of money in deep suspicion and resisted its introduction: Sparta. 6. How spartan were the Spartans? The legendary Spartan lawgiver Lycurgus decreed that the Spartans should use only iron as currency, making it so cumbersome that even a small amount would have to be carried by a yoke of oxen. This story may be part of the idealisation of the ancient Spartans as a warrior society dedicated to military pre-eminence. While classical Sparta did not mint its own coins, it used foreign silver, and some Spartan leaders were notoriously prone to bribery. However, laws may have been passed to prevent Spartans importing luxuries that might threaten to undermine their hardiness. When the Athenian playboy general Alcibiades defected to Sparta during its war with Athens in the late 5th Century, he adopted their meagre diet, tough training routines, coarse clothing, and Laconic expressions. But eventually his passion for all things Spartan extended to the king's wife Timaea, who became pregnant. Alcibiades returned to Athens, whence he had fled eight years earlier to avoid charges of shocking sacrilege, one of which was that he had subjected Athens' holy Mysteries to mockery. 7. What were the secrets of the Greek Mystery Cults? If I told you, I'd have to kill you. The secrets were fiercely guarded, and severe penalties were prescribed for anyone who divulged them or who, like Alcibiades, were thought to have profaned them. Initiates were required to undergo initiation rites which may have included transvestism and centred on secret objects (perhaps phalluses) and passwords being revealed. The aim was to give devotees a glimpse of the "other side", so that they could return to their lives blessed in the knowledge that when their turn came to die they could ensure the survival of their soul in the Underworld. Excavations have uncovered tombs containing passwords and instructions written on thin gold sheets as an aide-memoire for deceased devotees. The principal Greek Mystery Cults were those of Demeter, goddess of agriculture, and of Dionysus (also known as Bacchus), god of wine, ecstasy - and of theatre. 8. Who first made a drama out of a crisis? How did theatres begin? In 5th Century Athens, theatre was closely connected to the cult of Dionysus, in whose theatre on the southern slopes of the Acropolis tragedies and comedies were staged at an annual festival. But the origin of theatre is a much-debated issue. One tradition tells of the actor Thespis (hence "thespian" standing on a cart and playing a dramatic role for the first time around 532BC; another claims that drama began with ritual choruses and gradually introduced actors' parts. 3 Likes
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Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by papindinho(m): 10:53pm On Jul 24, 2014 |
cool and good to know |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Kalvan: 3:54am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Amazing. Next up: the myth, the falsehoods, the bible. If only I could go back in time and burn that book and its writers. 5 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by YoursGEJ(m): 3:58am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Kalvan: Amazing. O boy see as you want take buy first class ticket to hell fire. Please all nairalanders join me to pray for this man's soul. 29 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by eusuph99: 3:58am On Jul 25, 2014 |
I know say i know book pass pythagoras. |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Simplyunique: 3:59am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Hmm... Real or not? It doesn't concern me. |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by eghos12(m): 4:04am On Jul 25, 2014 |
after reading these one thing for sure i go still dey watch greek film, * lin leyonadis voice leyonadis= "SPARTANS WHAT IS YOUR PROFESSION" spartans ="WAR" 8 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Rilwayne001: 4:05am On Jul 25, 2014 |
If you ask mee na who i go ask? meanwhile I prefer the Egyptian mythology to it tho |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by shadowwalker101: 4:09am On Jul 25, 2014 |
I don't know I will do some research [img]http://www.?aff=391[/img] |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Kaxmytex(m): 4:17am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Interesante! |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by aminho(m): 4:26am On Jul 25, 2014 |
go and ask gej i saw him reading history of west africa he must have read that story too 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by NaLaugh: 4:47am On Jul 25, 2014 |
let me ask Zeus. please hold 2 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by IAMBREEZY: 4:48am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by NaLaugh: 4:50am On Jul 25, 2014 |
ALL OF THEM!! I know all the gods personally. We dey chill |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by tpia1: 4:51am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Kalvan: Amazing. use common sense dear. which of the books exactly do you find annoying? is it Moses' stone tablets you want to smash or what? obviously you're unaware the bible is a compilation of books. 8 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by aAK1(m): 4:56am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Mythology is the word. |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by JustCare: 4:56am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Yes! most of what is stated here really took place! The Greek gods ain't myth ...Olympus, Zeus, Valhalla, Odyssey etc. Many of this legends are true ...more especially when it talks about the enlightened and their clique (cult). Great and seeing men lived then, even great things happened then. 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by JustCare: 4:59am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Kalvan: Amazing.the above write-up didn't call for this bro 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by sod09(m): 5:00am On Jul 25, 2014 |
daylae: The culture and legends of ancient Greecestory for the gods 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Owobobrown(m): 5:07am On Jul 25, 2014 |
sparta with the realest and baddest nigga kratos GOD OF WAR 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Barselonia(m): 5:07am On Jul 25, 2014 |
ok |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Yazmin: 5:30am On Jul 25, 2014 |
7. Did Archilles ever have a heel. Greek mythology also lay emphasis on the weak point of the warrior 'Archilles' being his heel. However, from my research, he never had a heel, as he was amputated on both legs from birth after contacting ebola just 3 days after his naming ceremony. 8. Did my statement above make any sense? Look out for '9' below to get the response. 9. Read 7 to 8 allover..... Peace!!!!! 6 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by nexstorm(m): 5:44am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Dassall? |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by emmyclassic(m): 5:45am On Jul 25, 2014 |
OP after world war3 things that happened or existed today would be regarded as myth.. so I can confidently tell u d Greek mythology were true cos things are happening today that pple in generations to come would disbelief 3 Likes |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Hermanie(m): 5:48am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Most of them are true |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Hermanie(m): 5:52am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Yazmin: 7. Did Archilles ever have a heel.WTF |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by englishmart(m): 6:23am On Jul 25, 2014 |
The Greeks played a very important role in today's education. I have a Greek friend whose father is a professor in zoology. He uses lions, elephants and other wild animals as his security guard. He doesn't use magic o. 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by ichidodo: 6:25am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Troy was true,Sparta 300 was definitely true story although with some maggi and pepper likewise Hercules but Odysseus was the fiction of another true story starring Odysseus himself but without those mythical places and creatures.... Homer was a great story teller,writer and historian. 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by passionate88: 6:29am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by Nobody: 6:46am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Owobobrown: sparta with the realest and baddest nigga kratos GOD OF WAR"God of war"is a fictional story with a fictional act "kratos" 1 Like |
Re: How Many Greek Legends Were Really True by ebullientV(m): 6:49am On Jul 25, 2014 |
Kalvan: Amazing.You'll burn in hell first, before you get that chance. Stop all this rough play. Don't condemn ur soul to damnation. 2 Likes |
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