Humanities Week 2 Discussion Questions
Topic 1
1. The architecture of the Greeks and Romans has influenced people for centuries. When the founding
fathers of America began to design Washington, DC, how were they influenced by the Greeks and
Romans?
2. Do you think that modern architects can go too far and use too much of the ancient motifs in their
architecture? That modern architecture should look modern? Or do you think it dresses up modern
architecture and makes it look less stark and forbidding?
3. One thing to keep in mind is that history tends to repeat itself, and preserving ancient buildings can be
a reminder of that history (so that we don’t repeat it, if it’s "bad history.” But just to play devil’s
advocate, does it matter how we preserve it? We could preserve it either with reconstruction or with
preservation. Which might serve better the purpose to "remind us of the past and its mistakes"?
Topic 2
1. Ancient peoples were often much more advanced than modern people understand. Choose one
example of a Greek or Roman advancement that improved their societies. How did this advancement
affect the culture of the Greeks or Romans? Has this advancement evolved and is it in use, in some
capacity, in the modern world?
2. Theater is a wonderful example of something that originated with the Greeks and persisted into
Roman times and have been around continuously ever since and are still very much part of modern
dramatic arts. How has theater arts changed since ancient times?
3. Back in ancient times they had no skeletal steel structures like we do today, and all outside walls were
weight bearing. So the arch was the only way of carving out areas of the outside wall, to lighten the
physical weight, while maintaining or even improving on the strength of the walls. How did the use of
the arch change over the centuries?
