Sparks Commentary: Some thoughts about classical education

“[Chaerephon] went to Delphi and boldly asked the oracle to tell him … whether anyone was wiser than I was, and the Pythian prophetess answered, that there was no man wiser.”

“When I heard the answer, I said to myself, What can the god mean? and what is the interpretation of his riddle? for I know that I have no wisdom, small or great. What then can he mean when he says that I am the wisest of men?”

– Socrates at his trial, as recorded in Plato's “Apology”

Classical education, in this context, is the study of Ancient Greece and Rome

Classical education, in this context, is the study of Ancient Greece and Rome. It was once all the rage in Western schools, but that changed drastically in the 1960s. At that time, some thought the subject to be too focused on the “dead white guys” (as they saw them). There was also an increased focus on math and science education after the then-recent Sputnik crisis, and less focus on humanities education. The Classics survived (and still live on today), but are no longer seen as being “central” to Western education in the way that they were seen before. This is a shame, because the Greeks and Romans influenced so much of who we are today. They had a great influence on our art, sculpture, architecture, theater, drama, literature, philosophy, science, and even our form of government. If history is about understanding who we are and how we came to be that way, the Classics actually have much to tell us about our identity as a people, and how it came about.

The “Forum Romanum,” better known as the Roman Forum

Greek and Latin literature had a massive influence on Western culture …

If you major in French, you not only learn the language, but typically read books that are considered to be the “great literature” of the French language (and even read them in the original to boot). In a similar way, Classics majors often study the “great literature” of the Latin language and the Ancient Greek language. Very often, they read such literature in the original as well. It is not simply a major focused on the history of Ancient Greece and Rome, although that is certainly a big part of it. For example, those who study Ancient Greek might also read Homer’s “Iliad” and Homer's “Odyssey” in the original Greek, or read some of the works of Plato in the original Greek (as I have done). And there is one piece of classical literature that is more important than any other for this subject. This is the Christian Bible, divided into what are called the “Old Testament” and the “New Testament.” These are acknowledged to be important even by those who disagree with it, of course. The “Old Testament” was originally written in Hebrew, with the exception of some parts that were originally written in Aramaic. But there was an influential Greek translation called the “Septuagint” for the “Old Testament.” This translation is still used by some churches today. But more importantly, most of the “New Testament” is believed to have been originally written in Ancient Greek. When the Greek New Testament wanted to quote from the prior texts of the “Old Testament,” it had to do so in translated Greek, for its Greek-speaking audience. Significantly, the translation that it chose to cite was that of the “Septuagint.”

Homer, the author of the “Iliad” and the “Odyssey”

… partially through the Christian Bible, and partially through more secular works

The Greek New Testament became far more important to classical literature than the “Septuagint,” though, because Ancient Greek is believed to have been the original language of this portion of the Bible. But either way, Ancient Greek is important for a number of Christians today, who want to study the Bible. Many Catholics also study the Latin of the Vulgate Bible for a similar reason. Others study Latin for other classical literature – or, in some cases, later medieval literature, of which there is much in Latin. With the possible exception of certain parts of the Bible, I am no expert on classical or medieval literature, so I won’t stay on this subject for long. But suffice it to say that Greek and Latin words had a massive influence on virtually all Western languages, including English. This is another reason that people often study the classical languages – to learn about the history of our languages. (And Latin was the language of the Ancient Romans, if you didn’t already know this.) Another reason to study the Classics is to learn about Greek and Roman mythology, which is often revered as great literature, even though few today would subscribe to the religion (and I don’t myself).

“Novum Testamentum Graece,” a modern edition of the Greek New Testament

Greek and Roman philosophy influenced modern mathematics and science …

Another topic that Classics majors often study is the philosophy of the ancient world. This is a misunderstood part of classical education, so it may be helpful to clarify what I mean by this. All kinds of education were once considered part of “philosophy.” They included areas as diverse as logic, mathematics, science, ethics, political theory, and many other topics. It also included broad beliefs about reality, and the theory of knowledge that is foundational to all academic subjects. I should acknowledge that the record of Greek and Roman philosophy has not been uniformly good, but the Greeks were among the first to ask some of these questions. They laid the foundation for all kinds of education in the process. Eventually, some of these areas later formed their own disciplines, such as biology, chemistry, physics, economics, and psychology. Thus, all of these disciplines are indebted to the Ancient Greeks and Romans (among other peoples), not so much for the correctness of their answers, as for their willingness to ask these questions, and to test them against the evidence. The word “philosophy,” incidentally, comes from the Greek word φιλοσοφία (rendered as “philosophia”), which means “love of wisdom.”

Socrates, the most influential of all of the Greek philosophers

… and the moral teachings of Socrates (and others) influenced modern ethics and politics

Greek philosophy also included many moral teachers, such as the famous Socrates, who lived and taught in Athens. Socrates was known for asking all kinds of questions, some of which were actually hostile to the prevailing wisdom of the time. He made many enemies from attacking the Athenian establishment, and his questions sometimes embarrassed the “powers that be” in that famous city. Eventually, he was executed by the Athenian government in 399 BC for “impiety” and “corrupting the youth,” despite his being innocent of both charges. Nonetheless, he had turned the Athenian establishment on its head, and his views won out in the end by gaining converts after his death. It is important to be clear on this point: He was not the first person in history to die for his beliefs, or even the first to be celebrated for doing so. But he may have been the first to be celebrated for going against the authorities in the process. This rebellion against corruption and “conventional wisdom” had a great influence on future generations. Interestingly, it lives on today in a vast variety of protest and “reform” movements – for good and bad, and everything in between.

The execution of Socrates (which was by drinking hemlock poison)

And Greek and Roman history can teach us much about a free system of government …

As I have shown, the Classics major is focused on much more than just the history of Ancient Greece and Rome. But nonetheless, this history is still a big portion of the classical legacy, and it has much to teach us today. How do you make a “democracy” or a “republic” work? Just look at the thriving democracy of Ancient Greece in Athens, or the thriving republic of Ancient Rome in both the “Republic” and Empire periods (which are two different periods). The Greeks were the founders of democracy, and the word “democracy” is itself of Ancient Greek origin (as I describe here). The word “republic” is of Latin origin (as I also describe in the same post), and comes from the Ancient Roman form of government. The distinctions between these two terms are better dealt with in another blog post, more focused on that subject. But for this post, suffice it to say that their experience with liberty affords us many vital lessons about popular government, and how to make it work.

Pericles, one of the greatest of the Athenian statesmen

… with cautionary tales about what to avoid, and success stories to emulate

Greek and Roman history tells us much about how to maintain a free system of government, and affords us a fair number of cautionary tales about how it may be lost, and how quickly it can be lost when this does happen. History in general is about “learning from experience,” and the classical experience is more instructive than most when it comes to popular government. If we do not heed these negative lessons from Greek and Roman history, we may be led into some of the same mistakes that they made; and we can scarcely afford to repeat these mistakes. But we can also learn from their many positive successes in this area (and there are many of them), and emulate them as we try to solve modern problems. We can benefit from following the example of some of the most successful cultures of the ancient world, and learn from the secrets of their astonishing success stories. In this regard, classical history is nothing if not practical, and should not be limited only to Classics majors. History majors will also benefit from learning the Greek and Roman history, literature majors will benefit from learning the Greek and Roman literature, and philosophy majors will benefit from learning the Greek and Roman philosophy. All of these disciplines can learn from the Classics, and see what they have to offer us in the way of knowledge and wisdom.

Augustus, one of the most influential of the Roman Emperors

Conclusion: The subject of the Classics has a lasting and enduring grandeur

I have barely scratched the surface of classical education, and others have written massive volumes about such topics as Greek art, Greek sculpture, and Greek architecture (not to mention the Roman equivalents of these things). Volumes have also been written about many other aspects of classical civilization and culture, such as the ones that I have been discussing in the prior parts of this post. But I hope that I have been able to convey the lasting and enduring grandeur of the subject, and the generally positive legacy of the Ancient Greeks and Romans, in their most successful periods.

“So I left him, saying to myself, as I went away: Well, although I do not suppose that either of us knows anything really beautiful and good, I am better off than he is,—for he knows nothing, and thinks that he knows; I neither know nor think that I know. In this latter particular, then, I seem to have slightly the advantage of him.”

– Socrates at his trial, as recorded in Plato's “Apology”

If you liked this post, you might also like:

Falling in love with Classics: How I rediscovered Ancient Greece and Rome

Learning the basics of Ancient Greek from a book

Reading about the trial of Socrates in the original Greek

Reflections on learning about history of Ancient Greece

Reflections on learning about history of Ancient Rome

My search for the Greek New Testament

Some thoughts about Biblical education

Some thoughts about history education

Some thoughts about philosophy education

Some thoughts about foreign language education

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