ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Classical tradition

Classical tradition refers to the way of thinking and creating art that was popular in ancient Greece and Rome. It was a time when people valued reason, logic, and knowledge.

Imagine you are drawing a picture, and you have to follow some rules to make it look good. You might use shapes like squares, circles, and triangles to make your picture look balanced. Similarly, people in ancient Greece and Rome had a set of rules that they followed when they created art, wrote literature, or even thought about the world.

These rules were based on the belief that there was a perfect way to do things, and it was up to people to discover and replicate that perfection. People were encouraged to observe, analyze, and understand the world around them, and then use that knowledge to create something new.

A lot of famous art, literature, and philosophy from that time were based on the classical tradition. For example, William Shakespeare's plays often incorporated classical themes and ideas; the architecture of ancient Greek and Roman buildings still influences modern architecture today.

In conclusion, the classical tradition is a way of thinking and creating that values logic, reason, and knowledge, and it has influenced many aspects of our modern world.