First of all, the passage mentions street children by saying "children pitching pennies" and "kicks and cuffs are their daily diet". Also, pollution is touched in this passage as it mentions "summer stenches" which are bad smells that come because of urbanization and the drains that have foul smells (hence they mention "sink"). We also see how neighborhood noises and noisy people from all around the area show up in urbanized areas because of cramped spaces. Hence, quarreling is mentioned here as well as instances of profanity.
The patron gods and goddesses had very big importance in the past, though in some areas in the world they are still very respected. The city-state of Athens in the antiquity, was part of the Greek World. It had the same gods and goddesses as all other Greek city-states, but also as all of them, it had its own patron god/goddess. The patron goddess of Athens was the goddess Athena, which is easy to assume considering the name of the city. This meant that Athena was the goddess that was chosen by the Athenians as their protector, guardian, special deity, and supporter. The Athenians truly believed that Athena is the goddess that favors them, thus they respected her the most, after Zeus of course.
He was a French enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit.
