Greek was very popular among the students of the Greek language in the third century BC. In fact, the main topic of the Academy of Athens was teaching how to read and write Greek, especially in the context of oral composition. It didn’t take long for the Greeks to decide that parallelism was not only beautiful but also useful to read. It allowed them to read as many words as possible, while still seeing the main point of the sentence. When you read Greek, it is important to pay attention to the order of ideas and the way they relate to one another.
According to legend, the first recorded parallelism in Greek was in the Homeric Hymns, written around 500 BC. When the poet Homer wrote about Odysseus’ voyage across the Aegean Sea, he used parallelism a number of times. He described Odysseus as traveling through seven seas, each sea accompanied by its own set of troubles: the realm of the gods, the land of the giants, the realm of the nymphs, the world of the Argonauts, the world of the Trojans, and finally, the realm of the mythical Ionian Islands.
In ancient times, parallelisms and parallel syntax were highly valued. In fact, it is said that Sophocles’ works would have been much different without the aid of parallelisms. He was a master of subtle parallelisms. The most famous of his works is Oedipus Rex, in which he describes the murder of his father by his mother. His first line describes the crime with three parallel sentences, which have very distinct beginning, middle, and end points, as well as a definite ending.
According to Sophocles’ second line, Oedipus goes back to the underworld with his friend, Agamemus. He sees his father murdered and learns that his mother is alive and plotting revenge.
The fourth line says that Oedipus and his friend Agamus are now free. They decide to go home with their own house, which has the same shape as their father’s house, but has no doors.
The fifth line is very important in Oedipus and his friends’ plans. The Greek word for house is “hora”. If you try to translate this word into English, it means “home”.
As you can see, Oedipus’ fifth line describes the exact same situation as the first three lines. The first three lines describe his journey back from the underworld. Now, his friends tell him they are waiting for him at his house. The fourth line describes what happens after they arrive.
For a modern reader, it seems that Oedipus’ house was his father’s house. He and his friends then find out that his father died and is now being punished by the gods. It appears that they will be sent back to the underworld. However, according to the parallelisms in this line, his house is not his father’s house.
There is more to the story of Oedipus than this one parallelism, however. There are many others. The story of Oedipus and Electra and his daughter Cleopatra, for example, is the most famous.
The use of parallelism throughout history is a way of using language to express a theme. However, it is not limited to language alone. A number of other tools are also used, including pictures, gestures, metaphors, figures, and objects. All of these provide a way of expressing ideas and emotions, as well as allowing for a more fluid and seamless translation of thought.
In ancient times, parallelism is still very useful. However, it is not as important today as it once was. With the help of modern technology, it is important to look into the many new ways that parallelisms can be used to express ideas and feelings.
