西方文化概论作业

1.Why is it said “The West is an idea”?

Because it is not visible from space. Nothing comparable separates Asia from Europe, East from West.

2.Where is the boundary between Europe and Asia? What or who

determines it?

The Ural Mountains. People, not geology, determined that the Urals should be the arbitrary boundary between Europe and Asia.

3.Which part of the world did Europe originally refer to?

Originally, Europe was a name that referred only to central Greece.

4.Which part of the world did Asia initially refer to?

Initially, Asia was only that small portion of what is today Turkey inland from the Aegean Sea.

5.What are the origins of civilization?

They are the cultural and social traditions characteristic of the city.

6.Where did the “Western“ cities first appear?

western “ cities appeared first outside the “west”, in the Tigris and Euphrates river basins in present-day Iraq and Iran, a region that we today call the Middle East.

7.When did the idea of Western civilization finally establish based on the

merging of different cultural and intellectual traditions?

The 16th century.

8.How did ”the West” expand to the “settler societies” of the Americans,

Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa?

The “the West”expanded by establishing colonies overseas and by giving rise to t he ”settler societies” of the Americans, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

9.Why does the author say that Western civilization has dominant

influences on world civilization? Can you give some examples?

Western technology for harnessing nature, Western forms of economic and political organization, Western styles of art and music are dominant influences in world civilization. For instance ,china, the most populous country in the world, adheres to Marxist socialist principles-a European political tradition.

10.Where did Islam and Christianity start to develop?

Judaism.

11.What are the big problems caused by the Western tradition? Can you give

some examples?

Terrorist attacks. For instance, anti-Western terrorism around the world.

12.What keeps much of humanity in a seemingly hopeless cycle of poverty?

The integration of developing nations into the world economy.

13.What is the crisis the West is facing?

Anti-Western terrorism around the world.

14.What is the most important legacy that Western civilization has left to the

world?

Inherited political and social institutions, cultural forms, and religious and philosophical traditions form the framework within which the future must be created.

15.What attitude should we hold toward Western civilization?

We must first understand it and use this legacy properly. Because understanding yesterday frees us to create tomorrow.

Try to learn the story of “Golden Apple of Discord” by searching some information online. Then retell the story in your own words.

Zeus held a banquet to celebrate the marriage of hero Peleus and Thetis who is goddess of the sea. However, Eris, goddess of discord was not invited for lack of cutlery made in gold. Feeling offended, Eris arrived at the celebration. she left a golden apple (the Apple of Discord) with the inscription which means for the fairest one.

Three goddesses compete for the apple. They are Hera, Athena and Aphrodite. They asked Zeus to be the judge, but Zeus declared that Paris, a mortal prince, would judge which of them was the fairest. At that time, Paris was shepherding near the Trojan.

all three of the candidates appeared to Paris on Mount Ida. Hera offered the power to make him king of Europe and Asia, Athena offered wisdom and skill, and Aphrodite offered the love of the world's most beautiful woman, Helen. Paris awarded the apple to Aphrodite. Then Aphrodite helped Paris to thieve Helen from Greek king Menelaus. And other two goddesses became enemies of Paris and Troy.The story mentioned above is the mythological basis of the Trojan War.

Why did western civilization first appear in Greece?

1.geographical condition. A large number of mountains, hills, valleys divided country

up in to small areas.so we can say geographical place of ancient Greece is unique. 2.Climate. It has a warm but rather dry climate.it is typical climate of the Mediterranean.

It has warm winters and cool summers.

3.Trade business. Ancient Greece lacks in some resources, like fuel and raw materials.

Therefore, trade business is so developed in exchange for the materials Greece can not produce.

4.Industry. Ancient Greece has many industries in great cities and many towns

5.Cultural exchanges with other nations. While thousands of foreign merchants were

attracted to Greece, more and more local people went abroad. Opening to the outside world helps the Greek people broaden their views and increase knowledge 6.Sound administration by city governments.

Give a brief account of the major achievements of Greek culture, such as those in mythology and religion, philosophy, literature, art and science. Give examples.

Write at least 200 words.

Greek religion is an important origin of Greek mythology which was developed by the Homeric epic- religious tales. Greek mythology and religion are not only a treasure house but also the soil for Greek art.

Greek philosophy combined theoretical research with practical experience, and it achieved its high point in the history of human intellectual development. Thales is the earliest materialist and the representative of materialism. After that, more and more concepts about materialism, idealism and dialectics have emerged. But in Greece, the most influential philosophers were Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.

Socrates believed that one must gain knowledge to acquire virtue, while virtue is a source of knowledge. Plato was Socrates’ student, and he established the Academy-the first institution of higher learning the world had ever seen. Aristotle moved away from Plato’s metaphysical beliefs, becoming increasingly con cerned with science and practical matters of the world. And his analyses exerted enormous influence on post generations of Western thinkers.

Greek literature is considered to consist of epic, lyrical poetry and drama. The epic poetry in ancient Greece usually referred to two long narrative poems written by Homer-the Iliad and the Odyssey. Lyric poetry is another achievement of Greek literature. Greek drama originates from ceremonial and festival occasions. The best-known playwrights of this era were writers of tragedy -Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes who is the writer of comedy.

What are the factors attributed to the decline of Roman Empire?

Factors including political corruption, economic crises, class conflict lead the empire to collapse within. And the invasions and military threats cause it breakdown from outside.

According to our lecture and based on your textbook, write a summary of the historical development of ancient Rome.

No more than 300 words.

At the beginning, Rome is just a city with many small villages in central Italy near seashore. It grew up on seven hills, so the ancient residents of this place were called Seven-Hill Ally. Then the developing city began to admit more tribes.

Ancient Rome can be divided into three major periods. According to the tale, orphaned twins-Romulus and Remus have founded Rome at 735 B.C. They were reputedly descendants of Aeneas and suckled by a she-wolf. During in the regal period, Rome was ruled by seven kings. The last king was cruel, so he was consequently expelled before a republic was founded in place of the King’s reign.

The historical process of Roman Republic began about 509 BC or so and lasted until over 500 years. In the republican period, the city was ruled by two consuls and a senate. Under the presiding of the Roman Republic, the city has transfer from provincial obscurity to domination of the whole Mediterranean.

In 27 B.C, the Augustus founded his dictatorship in place of the republic. The Roman Empire was established with a territory stretching across the three continents. In about two centuries after Augustus took power, the Roman Empire reached its culmination. However, form the 5th century, the Roman Empire embarked on a path of decline.

The Roman Empire had broken up into two parts. The Eastern Roman Empire had its capital established in Constantinople. The Western Roman Empire came to an end in 476 when the German mercenary troops deposed the last emperor Romulus Augustulus.

本题要求总结归纳罗马女性社会地位的一些特点，根据书本进行说明

Roman women had no social status and were denied of personal identity.

1.Roman women were usually given only one name, either the feminine name for

the clan or the feminine name for the family, while Roman males had three names.

2.Roman women can’t go to forum of Augustus, law court and senate house.

3.Roman women were not allowed to see public fights and wrestling unless they

became vestal virgin.

In what sense do you think Roman culture owed its accomplishments to the benefits obtained from Greek culture? Give at least two examples.

It is universally acknowledged that Roman culture learned and inherited a lot from Greek culture. This could be seen in what Roman culture adopted from Greek culture as is demonstrated in religion, literature, philosophy, architecture and art.

Firstly, Roman religion was Influenced by Greek culture and myth. Romans extended their own beliefs to the wholesale adoption of the Olympian pantheon of gods. Almost every Roman god can be found its counterpart in Greek myth. For instance, Jupiter, originally a god of lightening, was turned into a chief God like Zeus. Juno turned into someone like Hera. Minerva turned into Athena in charge of arts, science and wisdom, and Ceres into Demeter.

Secondly, Roman literature was principally made up of poetry, prose and drama. And Greek works play an important role in the growth of Roman literature. For example, Terence, an important Roman dramatist, wrote six plays altogether. With two exceptions, all of them are adapted from the Greek playwright Menander, sometimes combining portions of two plays.

Thirdly, Roman philosophy was deeply influenced by the Greek philosophers, especially by the Stoic and Epicurean schools.

Fourthly, the Architecture of Ancient Rome inherited from Greek cultural tradition. And they also create a new architectural style which is greatly different from Greek building style. Like Baths of Diocletian, is attached to many domes.

Last but not least, Roman art is joined by Greek art and culture as part of classical culture. Given the close connections to Greek culture and art, many of the paintings, sculptures and mosaics of ancient Romans had a touch and charm of Greek culture.

Say something about Judaism and the Old Testament?

Founded by Moses, Judaism is a monotheistic religion which excluded all the other religious beliefs. During their captivity time in Babylonian, Jews conceived to establish a new religion that can guide them out of the oppression. In this period when Jews trace their history back to Abraham, one of the earliest monotheistic religions finally set up. The Old Testament and The Ten Commandments are two main doctrines of Judaism. Some religious beliefs and principles of Judaism ethics of Judaism had influenced Christianity and Islam. Many of Jewish traditions and festivals have provided the foundation for Western Christianity. For instance, Shavuot or Shabuoth ,the Jewish harvest festival, is something like the American Thanksgiving Day.

The Old Testament was adopted by Christianity from the Bible which was a compiled book about the documents left by the ancient Hebrews. The whole Old Testament is written in classical Hebrew. The reason why Judaist Bible is named The Old Testament is to distinguish the book from The New Testament, another book compiled after the birth of Christianity. The Old Testament includes three parts: Pentateuch, Prophets, Hagiographa and Apocrypha, totally with 39 books . By reading this book, we can better

understand Judaism. It is a treasure of religion and literature.

How much do you learn about Christianity and the New Testament?

谈一谈自己对基督教和《圣经新约》的了解。

T he New Testament, written in the decades after Jesus’ death, talks about the life of Jesus and his pupils. The most important books are the 4 Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John.

P eople commit sins when they break God’s rules. Killing, Stealing, Lying, Adultery, Working on Sunday. Jesus was born in the small town of Bethlehem, the same town as his ancestor King David. Christianity based itself on two forceful beliefs which separate it from all other religions. First, Jesus Christ is the son of God. Second, whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

There are three main branches of Christianity: the Roman Catholicism, the Protestantism and the Eastern Orthodox. They strong separately in France, America and Eastern Europe. Although they are distinct from each other in their doctrines and understanding of beliefs, they still be related closely to each other.

The New Testament, written in the several decades after Jesus’ death, includes the stories and thought of Jesus and his students. The New Testament consists of 27 books, The Gospel, Acts of the Apostles, Pauline and other Epistles, the Book of Revelation. The most significant books of the New Testament are the 4 Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, describing the life, death, resurrection of Jesus and the teaching of Jesus.

Watch Video 1 and find the answers to the following questions from what you hear in the video.

1. When did the Middle Ages begin?

The Middle Ages began in the 5th century.

2. What did the Romans call Germanic people?

Germanic people was called savage by the Romans.

3. What was the European civilization called in this period?

Dark Ages.

4. What was this period characterized?

This period was characterized by frequent economic and political crises.

Please compare Romanesque and Gothic construction.

请大家课本，从不同方面来比较一下两种有代表性的中世纪建筑风格：罗马式和哥特式风格的区别。

1.Window. Gothic style used large windows to take in more light for the interior space.

The large windows were decorated with colored designs in stained glass

2.Sculpture. Gothic sculptured figures become more realistic, displaying detail of

individual features, such as facial expressions and clothing.

3.Interior. Romanesque architectures have the compartmentalized interiors, while

Gothic buildings feature unified interior spaces.

4.Arch. Gothic buildings were replaced the Romanesque arch with the pointed arch,

raising the arched roof higher above the floor and directing the roof thrust downward rather than outward.

5.Wall. Romanesque churches use solid and heavy walls while Gothic have thinly layered

ones.

I. What are the factors which contribute to the emergence of Renaissance?

1.Social instability

2.Economic sluggishness

3.Intellectual depression

4.intorlerable life

II. Where did Renaissance first take place?

Florence.

III. What is Renaissance characterized by? (Features of Renaissance)

1.Saking ideological humanization

2.Intellectual freedom

3.Political awareness

IV. What areas did Renaissance make achievements in?

1.Painting

2.Sculpture

3.poetry

4.fiction

5.drama

6.religious reformation