Pericles Presentation Of Attributes During The Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War was a difficult period in Athenian history. Every victory was quickly followed by a crushing defeat. The overall morale of the Athenian people was low. During the funeral oration, Pericles gave a speech with this thesis: In order to protect the splendor and ideals of Athens, the Athenian citizens needed to undergo hardship for her sake. By doing that, he believed that they would win the Peloponnesian War. Pericles’ speech portrays Athens as a greater military power even though he exaggerates many elements of the war and Athenian society.
Pericles’ funeral oration was written to raise Athenian morale during the Peloponnesian War. Athens suffered devastating losses during the first year of the war. Pericles’ and Thucydides
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For example, he states that the Athenians are never actually defeated because they never fight with the entity of their army. In reality, the Athenians were defeated many times by their enemies. This was said to raise the Athenians confidence and prevent them from becoming discouraged. Through the speech, Pericles’ and Thucydides also inspire the Athenians by praising their bravery. In Athens, there was no systematic military training that the state organized. The Athenians prided themselves on their natural courage. Other states, like Sparta, requires their citizens to go through rigorous training in order to instill courage and camaraderie. In the speech, Pericles’ emphasizes how the Athenians are just as courageous as these other states while still being “open to the world.” He provided examples such as the Athenians welcoming in foreigners, and Athens does not rely on their weapons but their courage and loyalty. Additionally, Thucydides states that anyone who is defeated by Athens is not ashamed because they know how brilliant the Athenian military is. This is an exaggeration mentioned to raise the Athenian morale and to inspire them to fight for the wonderful city they call home. In their speech, Pericles and Thucydides portray a grand but distorted version of Athens in order to arouse Athenian pride and a fighting spirit in the
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