Essay/Term paper: Greek and roman influence on western civilization

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Humanities

Western civilization is what we call modern society that mainly includes North America and

Western Europe. But how did this western way of life come to be? Their are many different

ways but mainly through ancient cultures. The two main ones are the Greek and Roman.

Greece with their golden age and Rome with its great Empire and Republic and also

together.

Their are many ways in which western civilization is like the ancient Greek

civilization. They started the Olympic games. Greeks come up with the idea of an alphabet

that it still used today. They were the first to think of the idea of democracy. They had

common people participate in their government and to elect a leader. Their trials had an

actual jury made up of commoners. Greece was the first to think of paying people for their

labor. It also had the initial philosophers and thought up of the way we now write literature.

Including the idea of putting on a play. One of history’s greatest writes, Homer, thought up

of poems that are story size that we now call epic poems. But it was mainly through

government that Greeks influenced the world.

The other greatest influence on western civilization is the one of Ancient Rome.

They formed a law code much like the ones used now a day in many countries. First to

believe someone was innocent tell proven guilty. Had a Senate much like the ones used

today, with both upper class and lower class in it. And also had other assemblies. Rome

spread the Latin language which is the bases for almost all languages. They also thought up

the modern calendar. Rome helped expand Christianity, making it the most wide spread

religion. Roman’s also invented the numeral system that is still being used. First to have

people living in apartments and to think up a welfare system. Roman’s were even the ones

that gave the planets their names. Because of all these things Rome had a big impact on

western culture.

Rome and Greece both had a major impact on the architecture of western civilization.

Rome invented concrete which is the #1 thing used in building today. They also used brick

and glass. While the Greek’s used marble, which is still applied today. They both built big,

beautiful structures, many which are still standing. The Greek invention of the column, and

Rome with there favorite architecture shape, the arch, are both still very much used in the

present especially on government and capital buildings. Greece thought up the idea of

making sculptors of real people not just gods or animals. And they made it symmetrical

which is how sculptors make them to this day. Roman’s invented aqueducts and sewers.

They built great roads that were all connected and some are even still being walked on. All

of these things are a very big part of how we construct our buildings and cities.

In conclusion, with the Greek and Roman ideas and inventions they were able to have

a lasting effect on the world. In one way or another Greek and Roman civilizations have

helped develop math, science, literature, philosophy, architecture and art into what they are

now. But there biggest impact on our lives must be religion and government. Greece and

Rome were the birth place of democracy and Christianity, the two most important

developments of modern history. Although these great empires fell thousands of years ago,

they are still part of our lives every day.