Persian Empire (Achaemenid Empire)

Cyrus the Great

(r. 590-529 BCE)
* Darius I (r. 552-485 BCE) ---
Persepolis and Royal Road
• Against slavery
& paid workers
• Persian women:
higher jobs &
property rights
Greek and Phonenician Colonies
Consequences are
important
 Count no man
happy until he
Early Greek Society is dead.

• City state – polis --- rule of kings and then notables (oligarchy)
• notables (large land holders) vs. small land-owners
• A civil war ---- Athens in 6 th B.C. Solon’s bust,
• National
Draco ---very harsh laws
Archaeological
• 1. Solon (d. 560 B.C.): reformer Museum, Naples
• All debts --- cancelled no debt slavery
• 2. Peisistratus – overthrowing oligarchy & tyrant
• Oligarchy is back
• 3. Cleisthenes: Father of democracy
democracy (demo: people, kratos—power)
Citizens’ Assembly--- free males & right of vote
Representation of common classes in ruling & highly political
participation
• Battle of Platea (479 B.C.)
Phalanx System
• Macedonia --- independent
Greek Art in the Western
World

Parthenon, Athens Eglise de la Madeleine/ Church of St.

Mary Magdelene Paris
The White House The Second Bank of the U.S.
Altes Museum, Berlin
Words of Greek origin in English
In Turkish:

Anadolu, anatolē --- rise (of the sun)

efendi -- avthéntis --- otantik
iklim ---klima
kaldırım --- kallidrómos
liman ----leimon –shelter
morfin --- morpheus ---god of dreams
Paydos ---fayitos ---feeding time

Auto- self
Nomy –area of knowledge
Logy-logos- word
phone –voice
graphy- drawing
AXIAL AGE (800 -200 B.C.E)
Dates BCE Timeline
1500-1450 Moses, Exodus from Egypt & BCE Principal Axial Age Figures
1500-500 Vedic Age/sacred texts of Hinduism
800 Zoroaster (maybe even earlier)
1000-900 David and Solomon Lao Tzu (d. 6 th century)
Anaximander (d. 546)
Temple of Solomon Thales (d. 545)
Beginning of the Axial Age Buddha (d.c. 500)
800-470 Zoroaster, Upanishads in India, Buddha, Mahavira, Mahavira (d.527)
Anaximenes (d. 526)
Confucious, Lao Tzu Pythagoras (d. 495)
Foundation of Persian Empire Confucius (d. 479)
Heraclitus (d. 475)
586 Babylonian Captivity, 2 nd Jewish exile Parmenides (d.469)
Reformation of Judaism Empodecles (d. 430)
Anaxagoras (d. 428)
538 Cyrus the Great saves the Jews Socrates (d.399)
Democritos (d. 370)
Jews return to Jerusalem to re-build their temple.
Plato (d.347)
Aristotle (d.322)
500-400 Persian dominance in Asia Minor & Greco-Persian
400-300 Wars
Peloponnesian Wars & Golden Age of Greek
philosophy
 Karl Jaspers (d. 1969)

• Axial Age (Achsenzeit)

• Simultaneous appearance of
thinkers and philosophers in
Persia, China, India and Greek
world
• Challenge to Eurocentrism
 New Thinking in the Axial Age

• Dynamics of Universe
• Meaning of life
• Real vs. Illusion
• Human nature
• How to live together
Axial Age I: Persia
 Zoroaster (Zarathustra)
• 628–551 B.C.
• Polytheistic environment & mechanical rituals
• Leaving home at 20 for search of wisdom
• Ahura Mazda (day/fire) --- the Supreme god
• Ahriman/Angra Manyu --- (night)--- hostile spirit
• eternal struggle between good and evil
• «Good will win»
• Saoshyant ("One Who Will Bring Benefit")
• Day of Judgment, reward, punishment
• The Avesta
• Ruling elite of Persian Empire
The fire altar in Yazd
Axial Age I: Ionia & Greek
Mainland
Greek thinkers
non-religious
explanation for
material universe
 Ionia
--- more fertile, more rainfall, urbanized,
economically superior to Greek mainland .

Ephesus: Heraclitus
Miletos : Thales, Anaximenes
Samos: Pythagoras
 Ephesus Elea

Samos
Samos Miletos
 Water Air
Primary matter (arche) Fire/ you
can’t also
step into
same river
twice
Thales
Anaximenes
Heraclitus
Democritus
Pythagoras

No guys it is all from

atoms.

Numbers. All is
based on
mathematical order
 The measure of The only thing I He who has
man is what he know is that I know overcome his
does with power nothing fears will
truly be free
 • Ignorant inquirer
• Testing the logic of norms
• What is courage?
• What is self-control?
• What is piety?
• What is justice?
• Human wisdom begins with the recognition of
one’s own ignorance

Socrates with Pericles and Aspasia of Miletus

 Acting Could one ever be courageous and yet retreat in battle? For
courageously example, at the Battle of Platea, a Greek force had initially
involves not retreated but then defeated the Persian army. Weren’t those
retreating in soldiers couregous?
battle
 Could one ever have not money and
be virtuous?
Being virtuous requires Could one ever have money and not
money! be virtuous?
Hmmmmm...
Socrates

Trial of Socrates – 399

BCE

introducing false gods,

corrupting the youth

Death with hemlock

Jacques-Louis David, Death of Socrates, 1787, Metropolitan Museum of Art

Plato and Aristotle
• works on science, logic,
politics, and literature
inspiring Western
philosophy.
• Plato (d. 347 BCE)
• Aristotle (d. 384 BCE)
 Political Thinking

• Plato: Well-educated aristocrats are the most suited to ruling

• philosopher king + elite «guardians»
• Aristotle: The best system is monarchy ruled by the best man
 Have a look at this map if you
are interested in philosophy

Source: Harold Titus, Living Issues in

Philosophy
Thank you for your attention