Jack S.

1/13/15

Per. 4

                          Thoughts and Reglections on: The Funeral Oration by Thucydides 

Athens was known for achieving many great things in their time. Some of Athens greatest achievements are still seen in the world today. One's mind might jump directly to achievements such as inventions, but Athens also had many moral and philosophical achievements. For example, the Athenians were extremely grateful to their ancestors and the wisdom they passed down. Athenian ancestors are praised for being the building blocks of all that Athens had achieved. It's rare to see a culture be so grateful for their ancestors. This shows that the Athenians were capable of thinking about people besides themselves which helps keep them humble and not become too obsessed with themselves. The Athenians also tired to keep their community involved in most decisions to keep them happy and make them feel like they have a say in what happens to their city. Keeping the citizens happy is crucial to staying in power as long as possible. As history demonstrated through the dynastic cycle dynastic cycle, when people get upset or bored with the government they have they begin to rebel. With the Athenians keeping their citizens happy and involve they maximize the amount of time and the overall amount of power they can have. Another reason Athens was so great is because the citizens followed the people in power and supported them because they included them and made them feel involved.   Doing this created a generally better environment in Athens which made everything work much smoother and efficiently. Athens was so great because for how hard working they were as a city, they had a healthy balance between recreation and duty. In Sparta boys were sent to the most rigorous military training camps at the age of 12. In Athens people were free to as they pleased which kept them happy. Allowing the youth to do whatever they wanted gave them the ability to pursue activities like the arts and politics. By doing this, Athens cemented themselves as one of the most sophisticated cities in the world. Giving people the choice of what they wanted to do made Athens even better. Unlike Sparta, Athens appreciated more things than just war. Athenians were much more worldly and diverse in their thinking which propelled their city to new heights. One of the biggest reasons Athens was such a great place is because they were friendly to others. Doing this created mutual friendships between Athens and other parts of the world. A city with more allies is much better and appealing than a city with many foes. Athens was such a tightly knit community and each Athenian had the others back. The Athenians were so loyal to one  another that they felt safe and were willing to help one another which make their community happier and more solid. This is important because if citizens do not feel like they are part of the community then their is potential that they could get others who feel the same way and rebel. Happiness was infectious in Athens and the Athenian citizens were extremely happy with their day to day life.