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Collegium antropologicum, Vol. 26 No. 2, 2002.

Original scientific paper

The Ethical Structure of Homeric Society

K. Yamamoto

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Abstract

According to Plato, the society as reflected in Homer’s epics is one without state
power. In a society without state power, the act of revenge which the offended party prosecutes
on the offender is the only disciplinary force, which should be endorsed by the ethical
concepts of the society. Though the ethics of Homeric society has been analyzed before,
there has been no theory on the ethical structure of Homeric society analyzed from
the viewpoint of a society without state power. This study attempts to address this issue.
Six concepts, »oath«, »honor«, »guest«, »blood«, »food« and »revenge« have been extracted
from Homeric epics in comparison with the ethical structure of the Albanian Kanun.
The ethical structure of Homeric society appears to belong to the category of the ethics of
a society without state power, as represented by the ethical structure of the Kanun. Plato
explicitly criticizes the ethical value system of Homeric society, which he thinks is alienated
from the idea of Good.

Keywords

Hrčak ID:

28318

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/28318

Publication date:

16.12.2002.

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