Introduction
The classical tradition is the period when the western countries adopted the Greco-Roman ideas and perspectives at large. These aspects included art, education, institutions, monuments, architecture, cultural artifacts, and ritual practices. The classical tradition saw the major rise of the Greek civilization. Such aspects are found in Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad. They describe the characteristics of the Greek civilization and how it came to rise. This was later named by the scholars the Homeric age (Horace & Michie, 2002). The Homeric age was followed by the Greek classical period that saw the peak of the Greek civilization. The period was characterized by several contributions from the Greek scholars like Aristotle, Socrates, and Plato among others. They contributed to the fields of mathematics, medicine, literature, and philosophy among others. This period remains of major significance to the history of the Greeks to date (Horace & Michie, 2002).
Body
The Greek controlled the western world at that time. Their style of writing and government were adopted by the world at large. The climax of the Greek civilization has its intense impacts on the modern world, since much is borrowed from their culture. During the Greek civilization, there were certain wars that took place in the quest to overthrow Greek leadership, for instance, the Peloponnesian War and the Spartans War (Horace & Michie, 2002).. At that time, The Greek religion was polytheistic in nature and was often made of stories and myths. The religion gave an account to people of how to deal with mysteries of the physical world as well as gain a sense of belonging. Secondly, the religion gave arguments and inclinations on the challenges in life, for instance, the loss of self-esteem. The Greek religion still guaranteed its individuals several blessings in life, such as long life and perfect skills to help one stabilize in life. This explains the fact that the Greek people had a great trust in religion as the ultimate answer to the nature processes and the way of life. This strong belief was meant to explain the origin of man as well as the origin of sin. Therefore, they had several gods and goddesses to explain the myth of life to them. For instance, there was the Zeus, the chief god, with his wife, Hera. The gods were termed as mortals; hence, people had to perform rituals and sacrifices in their worship. In all the cities, the gods were also situated as patron deities that all the people had to worship. The Greek culture majored on self-control and avoidance of pride as characters one ought to adopt (Statius & Shackleton, 2003).
After the Greek civilization, the Romans conquered them and adopted the reign of the western world. The classical Roman period saw the rise and the peak of Roman civilization. For instance, the Romans imposed their Latin language on the world, which became a global language. The Roman period had to transport their knowledge and skills to the rest of the world, which was a reason why the Latin language had been dominant for many years. The classical traditions also saw the rise of the classical music. The classical music emphasized the clarity of the song as well as the melody expression and instrumental color. This led to the several performances of orchestral literature that were accompanied by some secular and sacred music. The classical style of music was also featured by homophony and sonata or instrumental music (Statius & Shackleton, 2003). People valued music at the time, thus, the artists invented several styles of music to suit their clients’ needs. The classical era was subjugated by three music composers, Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), as well as Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827).
The classical traditions also saw the major rise of the Christianity under Constantine I during the rise of the classical Roman period. Several people were converted during this period; hence, this formed the channel through which Christianity spread to the world. The classical traditions also brought a major interest in people’s lives so as to understand the world around them. People developed the science inclination by observing the world around them and were interested to know the functions of the human body. For instance, individuals studied the night skies in order to formulate the accurate calendars. These calendars guided people on planning their activities over a period of time. The study and exploration of the human body was also a tradition of the classical period, which led to the discovery of medication to cure the illnesses that posed a challenge to people’s lives during the time. More so, there was the development of some analytical and applied skills like counting and measuring of things and objects. The counting practices led to the emerging off mathematics as a wide area of study till the modern era.
Classical traditions descended to all the people in the world through classical learning. This led to the knowledge of the antique era being passed to several diverse generations like the Chinese, Babylonians as well as Egyptians among others (Kapus?cin?ski, 2008). The manifestation of the classical knowledge of these minor civilizations was depicted in their lifestyles. For instance, in Egypt, Ptolemy wrote an excellent book about Geography and the Solar System, owing it to the wisdom of the classical traditions. The later developers of the classical period include the Africans, the Chinese, as well as the Romans, who later applied and expanded the theoretical knowledge in several areas like Biology and the Ecosystem. More examples of applied classical traditions include the various empires that were built in diverse countries in order to spread the Greek and Roman ideas. For instance, Alexander the Great built an empire that was based on linking the classical traditions among many civilizations around the world. The empire was also aimed at building monuments to mark a great period in history. Areas like poetry, drama, as well as prose, also experienced great contributions around the world (Kapus?cin?ski, 2008).
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are several classical traditions that could be discussed in regard to Greece and the Roman civilization. This is because Greece and Roman civilizations saw a total change in the way of living among people. Several great scholars of the time are still studied in the modern systems of education, laying a basis for further research. The classical traditions also led to the formation of history, with all the cultures preserved and spread to the world. For instance, modern music, fashion, and design borrow many features from Ancient Greece and Roman Empire. To the modern-day, Greece and Roman Empire (now Italy) have the best systems of education and excellent and advanced infrastructure. Therefore, one could say that the classical traditions were a major shift of the human race. Great monuments and historical sites are still evident as a mark of the past Greece and Roman civilization.