5/20/15
Lesbos- Sappho, poet, all ladies,
Temple of Athena, one of the oldest in Turkey, doric, 5th cent bc, freeze on display in archaeological museum, Boston, and louvre, facing east, protector of city,
Platos academy, Aristotle wasn't his successor so he came to Assos, foreigner in this land, see the faith in Acropolis of Athena, discover gap between gods and human character, what does a wise person do, to create school but Hermius already had another philosophy school, until he gets killed, then Aristotle flees for safety, goes back to Athens, creates Lyceum,
After Moses is marred from entering promised land, the period of judges begins. The Israelites are settled now and have no distinguished leader, so they adopt a system of judges who are recognized by the populace to be intermediates between them and God. This is roughly during the 10th century BC, as other great nations are falling apart, the dark ages of Mediterranean is marked by earthquakes and invaders. However, the judges are not enough for the people to feel protected from invaders and they call for a leader, a king like they saw in Canaan. God was taken aback by this because He is ultimately their king, and worldly kings have the disadvantages of economical burdens such as taxation and land owning. Nonetheless, the Israelites demand their king on Earth and are given Saul, who, although admirable and obedient at first, they picked for wrong reasons. He had all the physical characteristics and charisma to be the warrior they believed they needed to feel safe but he becomes arrogant. As he puts aside God's word, Saul fails to wipe out a whole city in order to keep loot for himself despite his orders to destroy everything. He also doesn't wait for Samuels sacrifice, and neglects the power of Samuel's office. The three offices that ruled at this time include Samuel's, acting as the priest (comes from house of Eli), then there is Saul's, the office of the king, and then there were prophets, who were nebulous, hearing a call, and doing the Lord's bidding. These offices represent God's continued faithfulness by through His provision of leadership for His people. Then in the New Testament, all three offices are brought together in Christ. Saul confuses his office with Samuel's, however; and Saul and his sons die. David marries one of his daughters, fights Goliath, and sets himself up to become the next king. He brings stability to their growing kingdom, begins an empire, but is excellence stunted with too many wives and children, contributing to a messy family life, and his ultimate end. Then his son Solomon builds a lavish temple for God for housing such relics of their faith like the Arc of Covenant, the Tabernacle, Moses' tablets and staff. Then a division of the kingdoms occurs with jeroboam rehoboam, followed by lots of bad kings, that lead to an everlasting disunity between Judah and Israel.
Social World I (Euminides)
The main conflict of the Euminides is introduced in the opening scene with the sound-asleep Furies, dark old bird-like demons, surrounding Orestes in Apollo's Temple. In order to cleanse himself of the murder of his mother, he runs to his temple to also gain protection from divine retribution from the Old Rule of Gods. The Furies have held their reign since the time of Cronos and Gaia. These Furies are opposed by the New Rule such as Apollo and Athena who are representative of a new type of justice, from revenge and disorder to reason and order. This takes form in Athens, the origin of democracy as we know it in the western world, where trial by jury and wisdom reign. The difference between procedural and substantive justice comes into play in order to determine what should be done in regards to Orestes. The role of fate and destiny also plays a role, whether Agamemnon chose to kill Ephigenia, therefore justifying Clymnestra's murder and disproving Orestes', or whether he was destined to meet his end. The role of good and bad fortune, a will that is free or determined also come into play in accordance to the gods. These questions of justice help determine what makes a good society that promotes human flourishing. There must be law enforcers like Athena, good laws like the democracy in place in Athens, and good citizens like the jury. This represents an new order that is different from the old, represented by living by emotions that is demonstrated by the Furies and Clytemnestra. This disorder brings up the conflict of passion versus reason. Interestingly enough, the women in this story represent this unreasonable passion while the men demonstrate reason as shown by Athena's rule in favor of Orestes and Apollo.
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