A Study On The Thought Of Solon’s Reforms

Solon carried out a series of policies to stabilize the city-state under his ‘meditorship’during 595/594 BC,which played an important role for developing democracy in Athens in the following years,therefore,Solon’s reforms were widely spread as an important historical event.Generally,the research on Solon’s reforms is mostly based on the literature written by classical authors.Since the new materials have been discovered and the collation goes on,a more credible version of Solon’s reforms appears gradually,which helps us get known of the details of his reforms and which is of great value for restoring the historical truth.In addition,we can understand Solon’s standpoint and personality more accurately via the credible fragmentary so that we can get close to this important historical event in perspective of being Solon.Solon’s reforms are for solving the social problems appeared with the development of the Greek city-states,and his reforms covers different aspects in his time.In the first chapter,I analyze the social background mentioned in the fragmentary through the different perspectives of the social economic development,the colonial movement and tyrrania,and give a more profound introduction combining the mutual corroboration of poetry and history.In Solon’s view,the essential reason of social contradictions is unjust distribution,regarding this injustice,he carried out a series of reforms about wealth and political power.In the second chapter,it focuses on the nature,approach and political thought of Solon’s reforms.Looking back the past,we see that Solon shares the same and universal minds with Hesiod and Homer that they call for peace,freedom and equality of the city states while a state on the process to being developed.This universal political plea was influenced by the rational development of Ionia at that time,and Solon reformed under the influence of rational thought,and all his analysis about the problem Polis and the pursuit of individual ideals showed rational characteristics.Being moderate in the wealth and power,Solon also put "from mortal permanent order name" as his eternal pursuit,which embodies the rational characteristics of Solon’s thoughts;however,he did not separate himself from the mythical world depicted by Hesiod.From fragmentary,we see that he divided personal justice into two levels: the eternal name of mortals and the blessing of the gods.If the eternal name given by mortals is pursued by Solon,then the happiness bestowed by the gods is under the domination of God.The third chapter focuses on the eternal name and God-given happiness in Solon’s personal justice view.The fragmentary shows the trend of rationality and the attention of the gods,and Solon,both as lawgiver and poet,applies these two contradictory thoughts to the governance of the polis and the establishment of the mental order,and treats the ability to solving problems as a kind of wisdom given by the muses.It is a long tradition to pray to the muses,because a poet is inspired by the muses while composing a new poetry,but for Solon the muses also bestows wisdom to him.The muse live together with the Gods,beyond the mortal,breaks through the limitation of mortal’s cognation,for casts karma,warns the mortal.The following fourth chapter,interprets the phenomenon of the Solon’s pray to muse on the basis of reviewing the cultural connotations of the muses.As a conclusion,the fragmentary holds a great value to understand Solon’s policy and thought about governing a polis that we can get known of more accurately the position of Solon’s reforms,the judgment of the circumstance and the politically ideological tendency of Solon.Solon’s reforms were processed under the background of ancient customs,and he chose the legislative approach instead of being a tyrant,mainly because of his personality and rationality.Then,an image of poetic legislator was gradually framed for Solon through his administrative way and process.