Kouros
Type of statue featuring life sized male nudes in a stance in which the left foot is placed in front of the right.
Muses
Goddesses of
... [Show More] inspiration for literature, art, and science.
Doric order
The simplest of the classical Greek architectural styles, featuring unadorned columns with no base.
Post and lintel
Classical Greek architectural design that features two upright posts supporting a crossbeam called a lintel.
Frieze
A broad horizontal band of sculpted or painted decoration, usually on a wall near the ceiling.
Entablature
The horizontal layers of material of a building that are supported by columns or walls.
Pediment
The triangular upper part of the front of a building in the classical style.
Capital
The top part of a column between the shaft of the column and the entablature.
Catharsis
The purging of a spectator's strong emotions through experiencing tragedy; one of Aristotle's concepts.
Hubris
Greek word for excessive pride, presumption or arrogance (originally toward the gods).
Epic
A long poem recounting in elevated style the deeds of a legendary hero; any narrative work (novel, drama, film) dealing with epic themes.
Canon
A set of rules developed by the Greek artist Polykleitos for creating perfect proportionality in the human figure.
Diction
Wordchoice; can be classified as formal or informal, or denotative or connotative.
Hellenic
A synonym for Greek.
Skepticism
A philosophy that maintains that there can be no certainty in human knowledge and that mankind should continually be involved with finding the truth.
Allegory of the Cave
Plato's extended metaphor in The Republic that contrasts the way in which most humans perceive reality and Plato's idea of the true form of reality.
The Forms
Plato's concept that there are ideal essences (the Forms) of objects or things.
Philosopher King
A hypothetical ruler, or Guardian, of Plato's ideal city state.
Golden Mean
Aristotle's term for the desirable middle between two extremes, between excess and inadequacy.
Lyre
A string instrument like a U shaped harp known for its use by the classical Greeks.
Humanism
The study of the creative and intellectual contributions of all human cultures.
Polytheism
The belief in multiple gods; religion based on more than one god.
Classicism
Aesthetic attitudes and principles found in the art, architecture, and literature of ancient Greece and Rome.
Democracy
Government of direct rule by the people, a form developed by the Greeks.
Republic
Government where supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly.
Socratic Method
Analytical method of reasoning developed by Greek philosopher Socrates that asks a progression of questions in pursuit of the truth.
linear perspective
The creation of the illusion of depth based on the fact that parallel lines or edges appear to converge, and objects appear smaller as the distance between them and a viewer increases.
Protestant Reformation
A religious movement of the 16th century to reform the Roman Catholic Church that resulted in the creation of Protestant churches.
chiaroscuro
The creation of the illusion of depth through gradations of light and shade.
dialect
A form of language which is particular to a group of people, such as those belonging to a region or social class
Silk Road
An overland route from Constantinople to Beijing used in the trade of silks and spices between Europe and the Far East; it was eventually blocked by the Ottoman Empire and travel by sea became more popular.
classical humanism
The cultural movement of the Renaissance, based on Greek and Roman classic literature, that emphasized the dignity, worth, and rationality of humankind.
madrigal
A polyphonic vocal work, usually written for four or five voices, setting a pastoral poem to music, performed without instrumental accompaniment, and intended for secular use.
Reformation art
Art movement of the 16th century, largely in Northern Europe, that reflected religious views of Protestant Reformation.
iconoclasm
The deliberate destruction of religious art, imagery, icons, and other symbols or monuments.
In Praise of Folly
A satirical essay written by Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536) in which he criticizes the abuses and corruption of Catholic doctrine in parts of the Catholic Church.
balance
The achievement of putting different areas of the body in dynamic tension with one another.
symmetry
The pleasing or harmonious proportionate arrangement of corresponding parts of an artwork. [Show Less]