In trying to see the world through Greek eyes, the Newtonian view is only somewhat useful. We need to supplement it with the Greeks own color theories and to examine the way in which they actually tried to describe their world. Without this, the crucial role of light and brightness in their chromatic vision would be lost, as would any chance to make sense of the mobility and fluidity of their chromatic vocabulary. If we rely only on the mathematical abstractions of Newton’s optics, it will be impossible to make sense of how the Greeks saw the world.

Can we hope to understand how the Greeks saw their world?

Maria Michela Sassi
2017-01-01

Abstract

In trying to see the world through Greek eyes, the Newtonian view is only somewhat useful. We need to supplement it with the Greeks own color theories and to examine the way in which they actually tried to describe their world. Without this, the crucial role of light and brightness in their chromatic vision would be lost, as would any chance to make sense of the mobility and fluidity of their chromatic vocabulary. If we rely only on the mathematical abstractions of Newton’s optics, it will be impossible to make sense of how the Greeks saw the world.
2017
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
Can we hope to understand how the Greeks saw their world? | Aeon Essays.pdf

solo utenti autorizzati

Descrizione: Saggio
Tipologia: Versione finale editoriale
Licenza: NON PUBBLICO - Accesso privato/ristretto
Dimensione 4.99 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
4.99 MB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11568/873345
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus ND
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? ND
social impact