Since early times, human beings have searched for spiritual experiences that provide connections to their hearts and souls. People sometimes find these connections through experiencing music--perhaps the last remaining ubiquitous spiritual experience in Western culture. And yet, material values rule our world, even in music education. Is music in…

Thanks to Mario Untersteiner and those who followed his example, the talk about the Sophists can be heard not only in rhetoricians' hallways, classroom, and convention halls but also in the hallways, classrooms, and convention halls of philologists, historians, philosophers, and literary critics. Sophistical rhetoric emerged in a culture of…

Isocrates of ancient Greece attempted to create a wise and educated person in his school, not just an orator. His philosophy centered around the fact that teaching speech is not an exact science, but an art of opinions and beliefs that will educate the student to make sensible choices in life and speech, demonstrate a noble character, and be…

Just as a contemporary professional person maintains copies of wills, real estate records, and court decrees, so did 15th-century B.C. residents of the ancient city of Nuzi. Such documents, then and now, are generally written by legal scribes. The Hittites of the 14th century B.C. maintained detailed manuals concerning the care and feeding of…

Plato attacked the sophists' claim that they taught "virtue," and he believed that rhetoric, which they taught, was not an "art." If the notions of virtue and art are brought together and integrated to constitute an antithesis, the sophistic position becomes more intelligible and defensible. The Greek term "arete,"…

This paper argues that women experience two realities, a "private sphere" and a "public sphere," and the implication of this dual perspective needs to be addressed by women scholars in all disciplines. The idea behind these two spheres of reality is traced back to the ancient Greeks where household management (oikos) was the…

Examined is the evolution of Greece in the context of demographic, geopolitical, and historical factors. The international personality of Greece today is discussed. (RM)

Argues that an important part of the classical tradition defines rhetoric as an internal way of knowing and investigating one's culture. Asserts that classical rhetoric's goals move toward a sense of personal responsibility for language and audience. Calls for an emphasis upon such responsibility in modern public debate. (SG)

Argues that Protagoras, a leading sophist of the fifth century B.C.E., not only arrived at a theory of truth close to present-day antifoundationalism but also took the next step toward developing workable, socially constituted truths and knowledge for everyday practice. Sketches out Protagoras's project to employ the power of literacy for social…

Presents a debate between traditionalist ideas from Xin Lin Gale and postmodern ideas from Cheryl Glenn and Susan Jarratt. Quotes Gale who says that you cannot have it both ways, foundational and antifoundational: using the historical evidence to champion Aspasia while at the same time "reclaiming" her from the biases of those very documents.…

A sample of views of prominent historians, philosophers, political scientists, astronomers, and other scholars gives an idea of the magnitude of the Greek influence on western civilization. Specifically discussed is the Greek impact on the United States and the American contribution to the rebirth of Greece. (RM)

Discusses philological evidence supporting a fourth-century origin of the word "rhetorike." Demonstrates that, once named, rhetoric became increasingly disciplinized. Argues that the naming of the phenomena is as relevant to the naming of disciplines as to other social realities. Suggests ways traditional accounts of fifth-century…

Western civilization constitutes a perennial conflict of spiritualities derived from comprehensive world views that are contradictory and irreconcilable. These world views are the vertical view of Judeo-Christian supernaturalism, and the horizontal view of Greco-Roman naturalism. The Judeo-Christian view holds that reality includes and transcends…

Western civilization rests upon the Greeks, and Homer is the first, and perhaps best, source of the Greek foundation. This article discusses Homer's influence on shaping the modern mind, his contributions to literacy among the Greeks, and his impact on Greek education. (IAH)

Discusses Charles Kinglsey's "The Heroes" (three Greek fairy tales written for his children). Notes the conditions in which it was written, critical and popular reception since its publication in 1855, and some editions of the work. (RS)