ANCIENT GREECE. Greece: The Aegean Area Southern part of Balkans Low-lying, rugged mountains Fertile plains for farming, not enough to support population.

ANCIENT GREECE

Greece: The Aegean Area

• Southern part of Balkans• Low-lying, rugged mountains• Fertile plains for farming, not

enough to support population• Harbors along coastline,

trading• Mild climate, outdoor

activities• Mountains serve to:

– Protect from invaders– Limit travel &

communication

Literature• Story tellers, or bards, kept

traditions alive during “Dark Age”• Homer wrote the Iliad and Odyssey • Iliad details the Mycenaean siege

at Troy and Trojan Horse• Odyssey follows Odysseus’ journey

home after the war• Represent the values of Hellenic

civilization and used to teach students the excellence of their culture and dignity

Greek Deities• Believed the powerful

deities caused events in physical world to occur

• Unlike other ancient people, they placed importance on worth of an individual and treated gods with dignity

• They humanized deities and gods behaved as humans

• Greeks tried to be like deities

Gods, Goddesses, Festivals

• 12 most important deities lived on Mount Olympus

• Each of the deities controlled a specific part of the natural world

• Olympic Games: held every 4 years at Olympia in Zeus’ honor

• Plays, dances also honored the gods

POLIS

Polis• A city-state• Basic political unit of Hellenic

society• city, villages, fields surround an

acropolis (fortified hill)• Citizens in polis had rights and

responsibilities (vote, own property, etc)

• In return, they had to serve in gov’t or defend the polis in times of war

• Citizens were only land owning men

• Women, slaves, foreigners were not citizens and had no political, legal rights

Trade

• Growth of population after “Dark Age” forced people to look elsewhere for food

• Look towards trade to supply food

• A switch from barter to money system allowed trade to expand further

SPARTA

Military Society

• Life revolved around army, no need for city walls…army will defend

• All men aspired to become soldiers

• Newborn infants were examined– Healthy: could live– Sickly: left to die on a hillside

Military Society (cont’d)

• Age 7: taken to military barracks to start training in reading, writing, weapons

• Age 20: became soldiers and sent to frontier

• Age 30: marry and reproduce, but still stay in army

• Age 60: retire from army

Military Society• Life in barracks is harsh• Beaten by older children to

make you tough and strong• Whipped in front of others,

parents but could not cry• Given little food and encouraged

to steal, if caught beaten• Wore rags and no shoes all year• In time, taught to lie, steal,

cheat and to always get away with it

• Remember: you are superior b/c you are a Spartan!!!

Spartan Women• Life’s ambition is to be a

soldier’s mother• Brought up to be healthy,

strong…given equal food• Trained in wrestling, boxing,

gymnastics• Married at 19 so babies would

be healthy• More personal freedoms than

Athenians, but not serve in gov’t

Spartan Government

• There were kings, but their duties were limited to leading the army and conducting religious services

• The Assembly (male citizens over 30) passed laws, made decisions

• A Council of the Elders (male citizens over 60) served as supreme court

Results of Sparta

• The strict control over people led to a lack of economic development

• Discouraged trade and shunned philosophy, science and the arts

• They were exceptional athletes and aptly defended Greece against invaders

ATHENS

- Unlike Sparta they developed a constitution that stated all free, Athenian-born men were citizens…regardless of what social class

- Now they could participate in Assembly regardless of landThis reduced friction in Athens

Children in Athens

• Boys given an education, as they were expected to hold office as a citizen one day

• Girls received no formal education, just household training from mother

• Private tutors or schools• From 7-18 boys learned:

– Arithmetic– Geometry– Drawing, music, gymnastics– Main texts were Iliad andOdyssey

Children in Athens (cont’d)

• Wealthy girls would marry their father’s choice at 15

• Peasant girls would choose a husband from the field

• Boys would train for future jobs after school

• They entered the military after graduation and then went onto careers such as businessmen or Olympic athletes

Women in Athens

• Wore clothes to depict their status in society

• Most important job for all women is having children

• Wealthy women would manage house and slaves

• Peasant women would manage house and work in field

• Women not allowed to eat/sleep in same room as men, go to market or Olympics

Men in Athens

• Like their wives, wore clothes equal to their status

• In charge of family and house

• Given great respect at home• Would work as businessmen

or farmers during the day• Given the most responsibility

in Greece, so the most important people in Greece

Culture of Greece During

the “Golden Age”

Greek Architecture

• Its style and influence is around the world

• 3 types of columns– Doric– Ionic– Corinthian

 Doric column

Public Building in NY

Ohio State Capitol Building

The Palace at Knossos

Temple of Hera: Doric Style

Temple of Athena: Ionic Style

Architecture

• erected many beautiful public buildings such as temples, gymnasiums, and theaters

• decorated their buildings• most famous ones are

– Acropolis – Parthenon

Painting

• best preserved were those that were used to decorate vases

• illustrated myths and everyday life

Sculpture

• greatest Greek art• not many still in existence,

what we know comes chiefly through copies made during Roman times

• sculptors included:– Myron and his “Discus

Thrower”– Phidias who created statue of

Zeus at the Temple of Olympia

Drama

• Explored the human condition through theatrical dramas

• First people to write and perform plays

• Used to honor the gods, especially Dionysus

Tragedies

• Earliest Greek plays• A tragedy is where the lead

character struggles against fate only to be doomed to an unhappy ending

• Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides writers of tragedies

Comedies

• A comedy is a play with a happy ending and humorous themes

• Aristophanes, one of the most famous comedic writers

Nature of Greek Art

• reflected their culture and characteristics in 3 ways:– 1. glorified humans as the most

important creatures in the universe; omitted blemishes, represented Greek ideal of beauty

– 2. symbolized the pride of the people in their city states; honored the gods wanted to win their favor

– 3. expressed Greek ideals of harmony, balance, order and moderation; combined beauty and usefulness

The Olympics

• Athleticism stressed in culture• Games held in Olympia every

four years in honor of Zeus• All fighting and trading stopped

during games• Greek calendar began with the

first games• Events included: footrace,

broad jump, discus throw, boxing, wrestling

• Winners crowned were crowned with olive leaves

Philosophy

• Greek philosophers attempted to find universal absolute truths, yet they took absolute pride in expanding their minds and arguments. Much of today’s philosophical beliefs grew out of Greek origins.

SS SocratesPP PlatoAA Aristotle

Socrates

• The man that started it all---- Socrates didn’t come up with much, but questioned it all (especially sophists)

• know thyself- introspection- basis of psychology

Plato

• Socrates’ best students, Plato studied under Pythagoras after Socrates’ death

• believed that there is another world of truth, and that this world is only a representation or imitation of that perfect world

Plato (cont’d)

• There is no moral action in the world, moral action comes from yourself (introspection)

• also studied government- wrote book “The Republic”

Aristotle

• Student of Plato and also tutor to Alexander the Great

• Aristotle felt, unlike his teacher, that truth was in the world around us

• Based his ideas on what we could see

• He questioned nature of world and human thought and knowledge- invented a method for arguing using rules (scientific method)

Hellenistic Philosophers

• Focused on behavior, especially the question how to achieve peace of mind

• Cynic• Zeno

Scientists

• Mathematicians: realized that it was apart from everyday use

• Thales and Pythagoras were some of the first mathematicians

• Medicine: Hippocrates• “father of modern medicine”• First doctor to view medicine as

a science and not on religion• Urged hygiene and drafted an

ethical code for medical conduct