You may think you know what the most advance societies of all time are. Us Americans are thinking, “Oh! The iphone! Our civilization must be the most advanced,” and as each new invention comes out we think the same thing. But these inventions aren’t something as great as discovering, say, the first democracy.
Lets say that you lock three Ancient Greeks and three modern Americans in a room.
Steve Jobs says, “I invented the iphone, and the Macbook Air, and the-” and then one of the Greeks cuts him off.
“Well I invented democracy.” That shuts Steve Jobs right up.
So then Donald Trump decides that he can beat that. “Well I have millions and millions of dollars that I couldn’t possibly use in my lifetime and I earned it all from building expensive buildings.”
The Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates speaks. “I influenced many Athenians with my philosophy, teaching them about finding themselves and making them think. Technically, I invented Philosophy in its whole, and then died for my work.”
Ancient Greeks: 2. Modern day Americans: zip.
One of the head founders of the Olympics begins to speak. “Well I invented the Olympic Games that have been played many times and have not only brought civilization together, but have given aspiring athletes a cause to fight for and to win, furthermore improving overall health and motivation for young people to exercise.”
Bill Gates doesn’t say anything.
The Greeks made many discoveries; making our discoveries today seem useless in comparison.
They invented many other things that we use today. Here are some others besides the ones already listed above:
- Took the scientific approach of actually studying diseases to find more about them
- Playwrights produced the first dramas
- Invented rules of Geometry as well as setting down other math laws
- Wrote incredible mythology, poetry and literature.
- Wrote the first histories
So the Ancient Greeks really knew how to build the foundation for a semi-stable society while inventing many of the things we use today. Except for their geo-centric scheme, they were right on target for everything else.
The next time you’re thinking up inventions, think like the Greeks!
-Calister F. Wells
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1 user responded in this post
Well done Calister! You make a great point. The only thing I must add is that since the Greeks invented literature, poetry, geometry, science, etc. they invented school as well. Now why on Earth would we praise the Greeks for inventing the biggest waste of our children’s time?
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