Pericles Funeral Oration Essay

The Athenians in ancient Greece have been known as being a historically significant civilization with exemplary moral and legal codes that have been used as a model for democracy in the western civilization. However, in Pericles’ Funeral Oration, Pericles expounds on how the Athenian mentality and way of life is superior to all the others due to the values that they deem as important in their society. According to Pericles, the Athenians consider themselves to be an intellectual people that treat others in a just and equitable manner while preserving their own self-interest. He emphasizes the point that although the Athenians are successful imperialists, they maintain a worldly view based on tolerance by accepting people from
Pericles’ entire oration revolves around praises of the moral character of the Athenian soldiers, as Athens has become an extremely successful empire. In the funeral oration, Pericles especially focuses on the great amount of strength and power that has led other nations to model their governments after Athens (145). This respect by other powerful people for the empire helps to solidify the enduring legacy of the Athenian empire. A similar instance can be seen in The Melian Dialogue when the Athenian representative states that Athens is more concerned with islands like Melos where revolts are more likely to occur than in larger states as the islanders have less to lose and the larger states respect the Athenians and know how powerful they truly are (403). In addition, the mere fact that the Athenians are conquering islands in order to protect their waterways is tangible evidence of the massive power they hold in the ancient world. It is clear to observe from both readings that the Athenians strongly embrace the act of imperialism as a paramount value, and will go to great lengths to defend