According to the description in Homer's epic, the purpose of social education in ancient Greece at that time was to cultivate heroes who were good at fighting, smart and brave. The contents of education mainly include: physical education, art education and moral education. The coordination and unity of the three fully embodies the ultimate mission of ancient Greek education to pursue the harmonious development of human beings. (1) physical education class's respect for courage and martial arts is the social fashion in the "heroic age". This was first developed for the needs of war, and then gradually extended, making competitive sports a part of ancient Greek life, and physical education naturally became an important part of education. (2) Art Education The description of scenes such as wars, ceremonies and banquets in Homer's Epic also reflects that artistic activities such as singing, dancing and playing the piano are an important part of ancient Greek life. It can be inferred from the popularity of various artistic activities in ancient Greek life that art education is also an important part of education. (3) Moral Education Moral education was the core of ancient Greek education at that time, and its ultimate mission was to cultivate the qualities of ancient Greek heroes praised by Homer. Its main content is to cultivate the two virtues of courage and wisdom, which is reflected in Homer's epic. Achilles and Odysseus became the embodiment of courage and wisdom respectively. (4) The concept of harmonious education The three aspects of education described in Homer's epic are implemented in a coordinated and unified way, thus realizing the harmonious and all-round development of human body and mind. The epic describes in detail the education of Achilles, the hero of ancient Greece.
Achilles had two teachers, Kay Long Xing and Funix. Kay Long Xing taught Achilles all kinds of knowledge and skills, including not only sports skills such as hunting, equestrian, throwing guns, but also music art such as playing the lyre, even medical knowledge, and so on. When he was a teenager, Funix undertook the education of Achilles, not only raising him as carefully as his father, but also teaching him military skills and debating skills. It can be seen that the education received by Achilles, the hero of ancient Greece, is comprehensive and extensive, and it is the education to realize the harmonious and all-round development of human body and mind, which is the eternal charm of ancient Greek education. Third, the educational function Homer's epic is known as the "Bible" of the ancient Greeks and is the basic teaching material of ancient Greek education. As later generations said, "To be a polite Greek, the most important thing is to master Homer's epic. Learning the ancient legacy of Homer's epic has always been a feature of Greek education and runs through history. " Homer's epic and its Greek spirit have already penetrated into all aspects of ancient Greek social life. The ancient Greeks regarded Homer's epic as an educational model for teenagers, which not only adopted fascinating myths and legends and heroic stories, but also gave full play to the excellent qualities of heroes praised in the epic. The qualities of collectivism, heroism and humanism contained in Homer's epics have made important contributions to cultivating the virtues of teenagers in all aspects.
(1) The story of Achilles, the hero of the national spirit epic, is conducive to cultivating the sense of honor and responsibility of citizen collectivism, which is a concentrated expression of the four gods of the ancient Greek nation. Belinsky, a modern Russian writer, believes that "every character in Heriat shows a certain aspect of the Greek national spirit; However, Achilles is the sum of the substantial strength of this nation. " The ancient Greeks believed that war was a glorious act, and plundered wealth was a gift of heroic honor. Heroes can't be tolerated when the gift of hero's honor is taken away by power. Therefore, the "anger" of the hero Achilles in the epic is self-evident. Agamemnon, commander-in-chief of the allied forces, took his female prisoner, which was a damage to his honor. Achilles left the battlefield in a rage, resulting in heavy casualties of the Greek Coalition forces. In order to save the Greeks, Patroclus, Achilles' comrade-in-arms, pretended to be him and went to the battlefield to die heroically. At this time, Achilles was "furious" again and returned to the battlefield to defend his honor. Because Patroclus fought in his name and was killed by his enemies, which undoubtedly violated and damaged his honor. After two "anger", the sense of honor of collectivism suddenly rose in Achilles' heart. At this time, he strongly realized that the collective interests and honors are far higher than individuals. The heroes in the epic strive for honor and defend dignity, but at the same time they have not forgotten their responsibilities and obligations.
After the death of Patroclus, Achilles' spiritual motivation for returning to the battlefield was to avenge his relatives and friends, avenge his tribe, strive for the interests of his allies and fight for collective honor. It is a glorious act of a hero and the highest embodiment of the spirit of national collectivism to shoulder responsibilities, undertake obligations and defend the country. Constant war has brought untold pain and sorrow to people, but these immediately turned into grief and strength, and became the source of power for revenge and war. During the ten-year Trojan War, the heroes and soldiers of both sides undoubtedly practiced their commitment to collective responsibility and obligation with their blood and lives. (2) Heroes who advocate and cultivate civic hero qualities such as courage, wisdom, tenacity and fortitude are heroes. They are brave and tenacious, smart and resolute, but they can't get rid of their mortal fate, but they choose to go forward and pursue Excellence in their tenacious struggle against fate. Achilles, the hero in the epic, is the embodiment of courage. The Oracle once predicted that Achilles had two distinct fates: one was to be mediocre and live a long life; Either join the battlefield and die young. Achilles resolutely chose the latter and stubbornly fought against fate to the end. Of course, the courage of a hero is not the courage of a man, but the coexistence of wisdom and courage. Achilles, who is brave and good at fighting, is loved by all the soldiers because of his outstanding eloquence. As the epic hymn goes, "Achilles spoke, and everyone was silent, silent, and surprised by his words and strong words." Odysseus, another hero in the epic, is the embodiment of wisdom. His wit and resourcefulness are among the best in ancient Greek heroes, and the Trojan War, which lasted for ten years, ended with his "wooden horse plan". After the war, Odysseus drifted for ten years on his way home and experienced many difficulties and obstacles. The detailed description of Odysseus' hardships in the epic is not only an affirmation of his heroic qualities, but also a celebration of his superhuman wisdom. The hard experience fully shows Odysseus' indomitable spirit of struggle.