The Greek culture began before the Roman. The Iliad, one of the earliest of the great written Greek works, appeared roughly 700 years before the Aeneid , an early Roman work. The Iliad in turn was based on a good 300 years of verbal story telling. Greek civilization was mostly conducted from small city states. The Greeks loved life and lived it with zest. They had little interest in the afterlife which, even for the greatest of men, was believed to be an eternal unpleasantness. In the Odyssey, the dead Achilles says that he would rather be a slave in life than king of the dead. The best that a man could hope to do would be to perform great deeds that would be remembered after his death. Because they highly regarded intellectuals (poets, philosophers and others) in addition to their great warriors, great deeds could be accomplished by all.
The Greeks believed in individualism and prized differences in personality and character. They were fascinated by the contradiction that it is those very virtues that made a man great which can lead to his undoing. This is very subtle thinking. Their myths and religion reflect these traits. Their gods were personalized with individual strengths and flaws; gods made mistakes, got embarrassed and were caught cheating on their spouses. But, also there were gods who were heroic, wise, loving, and developed essential crafts like weaving. Mortal heroes also played an important role in the myths. There were times when the gods needed a mortal hero to win battles for them. But very rarely did a hero become a god. Many of the most heroic tales involve snatching someone back from the underworld. This is in stark contrast to those religions in which getting to the next world the right way is the main goal. Men ran the government, and spent a great deal of their time away from home. When not involved in politics, the men spent time in the fields, overseeing or working the crops, sailing, hunting, in manufacturing or in trade.
For fun, in addition to drinking parties, the men enjoyed wrestling, horseback riding, and the famous Olympic Games. When the men entertained their male friends, at the popular drinking parties, their wives and daughters were not allowed to attend. With the exception of ancient Sparta, Greek women had very limited freedom outside the home. They could attend weddings, funerals, some religious festivals, and could visit female neighbors for brief periods of time. In their home, Greek women were in charge! Their job was to run the house and to bear children. Most Greek women did not do housework themselves. Most Greek households had slaves. Female slaves cooked, cleaned, and worked in the fields. Male slaves watched the door, to make sure no one came in when the man of the house was away, except for female neighbors, and acted as tutors to the young male children. Wives and daughters were not allowed to watch the Olympic Games as the participants in the games did not wear clothes. Chariot racing was the only game women could win, and only then if they owned the horse. If that horse won, they received the prize.
The ancient Greeks considered their children to be 'youths' until they reached the age of 30! When a child was born to ancient Greek family, a naked father carried his child, in a ritual dance, around the household. Friends and relatives sent gifts. The family decorated the doorway of their home with a wreath of olives (for a boy) or a wreath of wool (for a girl). In Athens, as in most Greek city-states, with the exception of Sparta, girls stayed at home until they were married. Like their mother, they could attend certain festivals, funerals, and visit neighbors for brief periods of time. Their job was to help their mother, and to help in the fields, if necessary. In most Greek city-states, when young, the boys stayed at home, helping in the fields, sailing, and fishing. At age 6 or 7, they went to school.