Ancient Greek Thought: From Myth to Rational Inquiry

The Role of Myth in Ancient Greece

Mythology attempts to provide a comprehensive explanation of the universe, often based on the deification of natural phenomena, with explanations revealed by supernatural beings. Alternatively, it can be defined as a primitive explanation relying solely on imagination to find answers.

In ancient Greece, early poets like Homer and Hesiod composed myths. These poets were visionaries connected with nature, not philosophers. Their narratives reflected humanity's effort to formulate coherent answers to questions about reality, serving to organize societal conduct. Oral poetry, with its voice, sounds, and tone, expressed emotion and was inherently mythic or mythographical.

A key characteristic of mythic narratives is that natural phenomena are often considered random and unpredictable, dependent on the will of the gods. Myth articulates a unique experience of the divine and the primordial, projecting a distinct worldview.

Types of Myths

• Ethological Myths: Explain the origin of beings and things.
• Eschatological Myths: Focus on the ultimate future and the destruction of the world.
• Moral Myths: Dramatize the struggle between good and evil.
• Cosmogonic Myths: Narrate the origin of the world.
• Theogonic Myths: Narrate the origin and history of the gods.

Logos: The Dawn of Rational Thought

Logos, on the other hand, engaged reason to consider not only the answers but also the fundamental questions that explain reality. This approach led to systematic and rational philosophical answers. Philosophy placed humanity at the center of the cosmos, asserting that rational explanation required only human intelligence. This shift from myth to Logos involved a search for the arche, the unifying principle of the universe.

Physis: Understanding Nature

Physis, meaning 'nature,' held two significant interpretations for the ancient Greeks and for us:

• All beings that populate the universe, excluding those created by humans.
• The inherent nature of things – what makes something what it is and not something else.

This concept was fundamental to the birth of philosophy, as it led to the realization that everything possesses its own nature, distinct from human projections. Understanding physis allowed for the recognition of the laws governing nature.

Presocratics and the Cosmos

The Presocratics reasoned that the universe could be understood because it possessed an inherent internal order, with regularities in nature capable of revealing its secrets. Nature was not entirely unpredictable; it adhered to necessary rules. This ordered and admirable character of the universe was termed Cosmos.

Greek Knowledge: Senses and Reason

Ancient Greek thought recognized two primary types of knowledge:

• The senses, which connect us with immediate realities.
• Reason, which transcends the senses to grasp the essence of things.