CLA232H1 Lecture Notes - Zeus, Hidden Message, Croesus
Document Summary
January 30th, 2012: missed first 15 minutes of class. Xenia: host and guest interaction (very strong) (cyclops) zeus xenios . Persian wars: greeks out numbered, but culturally superior: gods love them, morally superior, pious. Herodotus: story of conflict & cultural contact (learning the differences of each group; then fighting over them) Preserve the memory of the past (achievements of greeks hellenes and others: what, what they reflect, how they became war-like. Origin of the difference between europe and asia: stealing women, persians, phoenicians, greeks (medea, europa, helen trojan war ) Beginning with the trojan war (1st major) sets precident for his story. Compares himself with homer (iliad and odyssey) Idea of marriage changes things; marriage is the anti-type to rape: merging of cultures. Woman-snatching: negative, possibly skewed because of adultery. Herodotus: father of history and the father of lies (fables & myths) No clear dividing line between personal and geopolitical culture. Tells the story of culture via personal interactions.