Greeks were first to come up with the big answers

Tuesday, 11 September 2007 10:41

Comment appeared in the Financial Times August 11 2007

Sir, It was interesting to see that Justin Marozzi ("Democracy in action", Life & Arts, August 4/5) assumes that Greeks "couldn't give a hoot" about their history. The recent very heated debate both in Greece and Cyprus about the accuracy of the content of an elementary school history book points to the contrary.

The difference these days - and this is perhaps what Mr Marozzi was trying to point at - is that they are no longer trapped in the history to the degree that it prevents them looking to the future. Equally, what most visitors to Athens tend not to absorb - and I am afraid this applies to Mr Marozzi as well - is that, regardless of whether they are overwhelmed or not by the history, Greeks may have produced great art and architecture but most importantly they were the first to ask rationally what is the right life for man and to give the best answer we have had to date: make it rational and worthy, introduce harmony into its chaos, and system into its profuse abundance (see Sir R.W. Livingstone's 1935 book, Greek Ideals and Modern Life). Whether they (or others) have succeeded is another matter.