How Did Alexander The Great Contribute to The Shaping of The Hellenistic Age? by Samuel Singh

The Hellenistic Age lasted from 800 B.C. and lasted until the death of Alexander

the Great in 323 B.C. This time was built on a change in the culture, politics,

thinking and art. Alexander the Great further helped this process with his conquests of

foreign lands. During this time many Greeks began settling in foreign lands.

When people began moving within different places in the Greek Empire it was

then that the Hellenistic Age really developed. These people settled in different lands and

they brought their own culture and ideas to different places and their influence could be

seen in many places today. This can be see in different forms of art from the Hellenistic

period. During this time there was influence from the Greeks in most all forms of art in

the known world and most of the art can still be viewed today.

The contributions of Alexander the Great was that he paved the way for most of

the ideas to be spread. From the empire that he founded there was much learning and

spreading of ideas and governing. This showed that through the interaction a new age

was being created and really it was.

This exchange of cultures also gave rise to new ideas in philosophy for which the

Greeks were famous. The philosophers began to think in terms of being universal and

members of a world community rather than being of separate cities. There was an

awakening of accepting the differences and uniqueness in people. They thought of the

world as one city, a city of humanity.

The main contribution of Alexander the Great can be seen through his need for

conquest. From what he did, unknowingly he created an empire of learning for an

exchange of cultures. The ideas and ideals of which are seen today through philosophy,

art and government. Also, he created an empire where people could mingle and spread

which only encouraged learning.