PericlesThe golden age of Athenian culture flourished under the leadership of Pericles (495-429 B.C.), a brilliant general, orator, patron of the arts and politician. For more information on Pericles, click here:
"In short, I assert that the city of Athens, taken all together, is a model for all Greece, and that each Athenian, as far as I can see, is more self-reliant as an individual and behaves with exceptional versatility and grace in the more varied forms of activity."
-Pericles, Funeral Speech of Pericles "Our natural bravery springs from our way of life, not from the compulsion of laws...We are lovers of the beautiful, yet simple in our tastes, and we cultivate the arts without loss of manliness." -Pericles |
Thesis
Athens succeeded, evolved, and failed due to different characteristics of their geography, political history, culture, and science/technology.