The Peloponnesian War and Pericles' Funeral Oration

"What points is Pericles trying to make about Athens in his Funeral Oration?"


     Pericles was trying to get across how wonderful Athens was, praise the people, and honor the dead at the same time. 
     
     He talked about all the advantages that Athenian citizens had, he tried to motivate the living during a time of war, and as stated earlier, honor the dead.  
     
     He wanted to help the people to keep going by telling them about what they had to live up to (The dead soldiers).  He also tried to give them a reason(s)to keep fighting by telling them about all that they had to lose.  He told them about all of the amazing advantages that Athens had to offer like its freedom in government and ordinary life.  

     These were the points that Pericles was trying to make in his Funeral Oration.


"Why was the Peloponnesian War fought?  What was its long-term significance?"


     The Peloponnesian War was fought for these reasons.

1.  Athens appeared to be using the Delian League's ship-building funds to help beautify itself instead of to build ships for the protection of those in the Delian League.
2.  Sparta was afraid that Athens was becoming too powerful.

     Here is the war's long-term significance.

1.  Athens would lose its dominance of the other members of the Delian League.
2.  Sparta would take control of things.
3.  In the end, this war between the Greeks would ultimately weaken them and spell out some serious consequences.

     Well, That's all for this week. I hope that you have enjoyed this essay on "The Peloponnesian War and Pericles' Funeral Oration". See you next Friday, and please let me know what you think! 

     

Ethics and the Development of History

"What is the view of the biblical materials on the role of ethics in the development of history?"


     In the development of history, biblical materials have influenced ethics by a very large degree.  We see this when we give money to the poor and needy, help build homes for those who don't have any, etc.  
     
     There are lots of people out there who don't believe in God and yet, they do their best to help those in need.  Why? The answer is simple.  In every society, people have believed in some form of morality that was handed down from one generation to the next.  For many, what was handed down to them was biblical ethics.  For instance, it is illegal to commit murder.  Where else do we find this law?  We find it in Exodus chapter 20, verse 13.  "Thou shalt not kill."  What is another law that we have in the world today?  Let's look at Exodus chapter 20, verse 15.   "Thou shalt not steale."   These are two very well known laws in today's world, as well as the world of the past.     
     
     Although some might not agree with everything in the Bible, you have to admit that biblical materials did play a huge part in ethics, and the history of the world in general.

     Thank you very much for reading, and please let me know what you think! 
   

Epinephrine (Adrenaline)

    Imagine this, You are riding your horse at a cater through a beautiful meadow in the early morning.  The crisp cool air, the mist, and the sounds of birds singing makes this perfect.  You slow your horse down to a walk and decide to just take in all of the world's beauty.  All of a sudden, you see a large furry animal in the distance.  You figure that it is just your neighbors dog and keep going.  Your horse seems uneasy as if the dog had the intention of hurting it.  You think to yourself, "That's strange, my horse has never been afraid of a dog before."  As you near the dog your heart nearly stops. You now realize that what you are staring at is not even close to a dog, it's a Black Bear!   You want to tell your horse to gallop, but you're scared that even the slightest move might make the bear attack.  Too late!  The bear is coming at you and your horse!  Your horse breaks into such a gallop that not even race horses can move that fast.  (Then again, race horses don't have a hungry beast chasing them.)  The bear couldn't keep up and very soon, you lose him. 


    What was the point to my story? I am trying to give you an example of an adrenaline powered response.  Adrenaline is a hormone that is secreted by the adrenal glands.  It makes our blood flow quicken, it allows us to breath in more oxygen, and increases carbohydrate metabolism.  
   Our body knows when to use this hormone because of long-distance cell signaling.  Long-distance cell signaling is a way that cells communicate from (you guessed it!) a long distance.  
   Alright, but what is the point of adrenaline?  The point of adrenaline is to trigger that "fight or flight" response. Without adrenaline, whenever we were face to face with a lion, tiger, whoolly mammoth, cannibal, etc., we would not know weather to fly like a little bird or to sit happily like a tree frog that has found a lovely tree. (Tree frogs like trees in case you didn't know.)  

    I hope that you have enjoyed this essay and please let me know what you think!