The Influence of Ancient Rome and Greece on Modern Society - Essay Example

Evidence of Greco-Roman Society Found in the Modern West Whether it is hubris or sheer ignorance, there exists in popular opinion the idea that the modern period is somehow unique. This is not to try to advocate the absurd idea that things, people, cultures, and nations (to name a few examples) do not change with the course of time. They certainly do. Sometimes, however, it is claimed that modern society and civilization is somehow immune to the effects of history or that, thanks to science and technology, modern man has somehow risen above the trends of history. This is particularly true with respect to the topics of war and barbarity. Moderns think of themselves as “civilized” and “advanced,” despite the fact that the twentieth century was the most war-torn and murderous of all previous epochs. This is because no matter how many trinkets man invents, he cannot escape his past. One need only take a glance at architecture, political governance, and education to find several historical “leftovers.” In the areas of the architecture of government buildings, forms and methods of government, and the education of foreign nationals at top American or British universities one can see the persistent influence that Ancient Rome and Greece continue to wield to this day. In the Western world of the twentieth century democracy in one form or another came to be the political norm. It took two vicious wars to establish that fact, but establish it those wars did. Modern democracy has two variants which both coexist, in differing degrees and to differing extents, in nearly every Western country. The first is the notion of “direct democracy” in which citizens vote directly on legislation or other legal agendas. The second is “representative democracy” whereby citizens elect officials who gather together to make the laws and establish the legal norms. Both of these variants originate in Ancient Greece and Rome. Officially the United States is a constitutional republic, which would put it in the latter camp of democracies. At the national level, its laws and regulations are made by officials who have been sent for that very purpose. The British Parliament, functioning as it does in a constitutional monarchy, is comprised of members representing, admittedly chosen in a different way than in the United States, the great mass of the British people. Both of these political institutions are very much analogous to the Roman Senate which stood as a group of men chosen, albeit by social elites, to carry out the business of government. (Bowler 2007, 351-352). The basic structure is there in the case of the American system. The Senate is the modern equivalent of the ancient Roman Senate. The House of Representatives is similar to the various plebeian assemblies of Rome. The more interesting aspect of the democracy of the Ancient Greeks which resonates with us today is the concept of direct democracy. Though the direct participation of voters in law-making at the national level is virtually non-existent, it is very much a reality at the State and local level in the United States, as well as being a phenomenon in other Western countries. In the United States, many people feel it perfectly just that the citizenry has a direct say on many laws. “A survey conducted in 2004 found more than 70 percent of American respondents supporting a proposal for a national initiative and referendum process and similar levels of support were found in the 1980s…a 1997 Eurobarometer poll found 72 percent of British respondents favored having a…form of direct democracy” (Bowler 2007, 352). The historical impetus for this sentiment originates in the politics and government of Ancient Athens. Direct democracy, be it plebiscites or referenda, exists in many countries including Australia, Canada, Spain, and Switzerland. This stands, much like it did in Ancient Athens, as a way for the everyday citizen to have a profound influence on government. In the United States many “viewed direct democracy as an institutional toll that could be used to force legislatures to better respond to mass preferences for policies” (Bowler 2007, 353). This is the modern day law-making citizen of Ancient Greece. The sphere of politics and government is the setting for another major piece of evidence harking back to Ancient Rome and Greece. Many of the Legislature and government buildings of many Western countries bear the clear mark of Ancient Greek and Roman influence. Following in the footsteps of the ancients, many modern Western countries place their government buildings in places and cities of historical or political significance. This is because buildings with an express political function are a way for governments to show off to their publics and to demonstrate the possession of power. “National parliamentary buildings are among the most prominent symbols of government in any polity” (Goodsell 1988, 288). Architecture, like other art forms, has ever been but a means to express an overarching philosophy, ideology, and/or worldview. Like writing, it is a means to show one’s beliefs and values. “[P]ublic buildings may be thought of as political metaphors whose solid facades make governmental institutions appear mighty and durable” (Goodsell 1998, 289). The fact that so much of American, British, and Continental European political government architecture stands as an outright copy of the Ancient Roman and Greek models speaks to the connection modern regimes want to make between themselves and the ancients. Thus the construction of buildings with Greek capitol and Roman rotunda is a clear case of historical borrowing. By mimicking their architecture they wish to mimic their institutions. The other way that the modern West, especially the Americans and the British, mirror the tendencies of the Ancients is in the area of university and higher education. The Ancient Romans in particular were famous for taking the social and political elites of the countries they conquered or over which they had influence and educating them in Rome. This was a way to expose them to Roman culture, to allow them to network with Roman officials, and to try to win their loyalty. Education has ever been seen as a means to indoctrinate people. In the eighteenth century the British and in the twentieth century the Americans educated the elites of many Third-World countries. In the field of agricultural economics, for example, the education of foreigners has become extremely widespread. “Present trends indicate that the increasing enrollment of foreign doctoral students [is increasing]…it will demonstrate the need for the AEC profession to consider the potential role of internationals students as AEC educators in U.S. universities” (Gempesaw 1989, 275). Thus like the Ancient Romans who eventually began to develop their army with mostly non-Roman soldiers, today in America certain fields have begun to hire foreign nationals in order to meet their skill and hiring needs. This all has the effect of spreading American influence in the world. Elites educated in Ancient Rome returned to their home countries and spread Roman culture. In similar fashion, students returning from America bring with them American cultural influence. “The problem of reintegration into native societies after foreign study” is a matter of much research for academics” (Zhao 1996, 145). These students return and have trouble returning to their old life. In any case, many of these students bring back with them notions of democracy and freedom. It is clear enough that the contemporary period is no way immune to the forces of history. Instead the present is full of proof that the past once existed. In the areas of political processes and institutions, architecture, and higher education, the influence of the Ancient Greeks and Romans is undeniable. The “modern” countries of the present have much that from an historical standpoint is anything but. Works Cited Bowler, Shaun & Todd Donovan. “Enraged or Engaged? Preferences for Direct Citizen Participation in Affluent Democracies.” Political Research Quarterly 60:3 (2007): 351-362. Gempesaw, C.M. & G.J. Elterich. “The Importance of International Students in the Academic Market for Agricultural Economists.” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 71:2 (1989): 275-279. Goodsell, Charles T. “The Architecture of Parliaments: Legislative Houses and Political Culture.” British Journal of Political Science 18:3 (1988): 287-302. Zhao, Dingxin. “Foreign Study as a Safety-Valve: The Experience of China’s University Students Going Abroad in the Eighties.” Higher Education 31:2 (1996): 145-163. Read More