Chapter 5 Outline � Ancient Greece
I. Minoan Civilization
a. Minoans were named later by archaeologists after their King Minos.
b. The rulers and important leaders of Minoan society lived in the palace of Knossos.
i. Paintings show that women appeared freely in public and may have enjoyed more rights than other ancient civilizations.
c. Around 1400 B.C. the Minoans left no trace and had vanished.
i. There are many possible explanations for this but experts know it was somewhat due to invasions by the Mycenaeans.
II. Rulers of Mycenae
a. The Mycenaeans conquered the Greek mainland before overrunning Crete.
b. The Mycenaeans were very successful sea traders and stretched their trade through Sicily, Egypt, Italy, and Mesopotamia.
c. The Mycenaeans are well known for their part in the Trojan War, around 1250 B.C.
i. The Mycenaeans wanted the straits that connected the Mediterranean with the Black seas from troy.
III. The Age of homer
a. The Dorians invaded from the north, and Greek civilization seemed to take a step backwards.
b. An oral record was kept that gives hints about life during that period of time.
i. Homer (blind poet) was probably the most famous poet of the epics such as Iliad and the Odyssey.
c. The epics of Homer seem like they will last for all time and they have already helped and influenced people for the past 3,000 years.
IV. Looking Ahead
a. After the Dorian invasions the Greeks lived in small, isolated villages.
b. Their civilization was developed with many influences of the outside world.
c. Over time, the Greeks the stories of Crete and Mycenae became part of their heritage.
V. Geography: The Greek Homeland
a. Greece is divided into isolated valleys by mountains, these valleys provided places to farm and develop.
b. Greeks felt a strong loyalty to their small city-states and did their best to defend them.
c. While mountains divided Greeks from other places, the seas provided a vital link to the outside world.
i. With its hundred bays, the Greek coastline provided safe harbors for ships.
ii. Sailing gave the Greeks ideas such as alphabet; it also helped to scatter people when the population grew too big.
VI. The Polis
a. A polis is a unique version of a city-state. The city was split into two levels: the acropolis, and below that the main city.
i. Acropolis held marble temples and areas dedicated to gods and goddesses.
ii. Main city housed a marketplace, theater, public buildings, and homes.
iii. Since the population of these city-states was small, they all triumphed together when there was a defeat.
b. There were many different early governments. At first, the ruler of the polis was a king, slowly though, power shifter to a class of noble landowners.
i. At first the nobles defended the king, but later they obtained power for themselves.
ii. This turned into an aristocracy, or rule by a landholding elite.
iii. Trade expanded, making farmers, merchant and artisans get more attention.
c. Changes in military technology and warfare contributed to the increased power of the middle class.
i. Iron weapons and tools replaced bronze ones.
ii. Ordinary citizens could then afford helmets, shields, and swords.
iii. A phalanx (massive formation of heavily armed foot soldiers) was developed.
VII. Sparta: A Nation of Soldiers
a. Spartan people had a difficult life with citizenship and Sparta.
i. Sickly children were abandoned,
ii. Spartans wanted future soldiers or mothers of soldiers to be healthy.
iii. At seven, boys trained for the military.
b. Women and girls also had hard roles.
i. They were expected to produce healthy sons for the army.
ii. Had to obey the men.
iii. Some women took charge of family�s estates since the men were concerned with war.
c. Spartans and their neighbors weren�t close.
i. Spartans separated themselves from other Greeks.
ii. Looked down on trade and wealth.
iii. Did not let their own citizens travel.
VIII. Athens: A Limited Democracy
a. Athenian People Demanded for a Change
i. Athens moved slowly towards democracy.
ii. Solon made reforms � outlawed slavery, opened high offices to more citizens, granted citizenship to some foreigners, and gave the Athenian assembly more say in important decisions.
iii. Economy improved.
b. Later reforms were made for the Athenians.
i. Pisistratus helped farmers by giving them loans and land taken from nobles, gave poor citizens voting rights, and weakened aristocracy.
ii. Cleisthenes broadened the role of ordinary citizens in government and set up a legislature.
iii. Athens gave more people a say in decision making than other ancient civilizations.
c. Life in Athens/Women/Education
i. Women had a secluded existence and maintained the household.
ii. Boys attended school if their families could pay.
iii. Athens encourages young men to explore many areas of knowledge rather that forcing them into military.
IX. Forces For Unity
a. The Greeks religion was different than that of other countries because they were polytheistic.
i. Believed that gods and goddesses lived on Mount Olympus in Northern Greece.
ii. Honored their gods with festivals and temples.
iii. Some began to see that natural forces not the will of gods regulated the universe.
b. Greeks had a certain view of non-Greeks.
i. Greeks came in contact with many different people through trade and population expansion.
ii. Greeks felt superior to non-Greek and called them barborai, or people who do not speak Greek.
iii. This is where the word barbarian comes from.
c. The sense of uniqueness helped the Greeks would help the Greeks face a threat from the mightiest power in the Mediterranean World.
X. The Persian Wars
a. The Persians won a victory at Marathon.
i. Athenians were outnumbered 2:1.
ii. Greeks won in spite of the disadvantage.
iii. Declared it a huge victory.
b. Persians renewed their attacks again.
i. Greeks were victorious again.
c. These results made the Greeks react.
i. The Greeks felt their own uniqueness.
ii. They felt the gods had protected them.
XI. Athens in the Age of Pericles
a. Political life in Greece was different than many other countries.
i. Pericles established a direct democracy.
ii. Most governments work indirectly today.
b. At the Funeral Oration Pericles talked about the citizens having a special role for the country.
i. The Funeral Oration was a funeral of Athenians that were slain in the battle.
c. Athens prospered during the age of Pericles through both economic and cultural life.
i. Pericles turned Athens into the cultural center of Greece.
ii. Greeks developed into thinkers, writers, and artists.
XII. Greek Against Greek
a. Many Greeks resented Athenian domination
i. The Greek world split into two rival camps: the Delian League and the Peloponnesian League.
b. Athens faced a geographical disadvantage to Sparta during the Peloponnesian War.
i. Sparta was located inland so it could not be attacked from the sea.
ii. People in Athens moved into the city walls, which led to disaster.
iii. Each side committed savages to the other side.
c. The aftermath shows that the Athenians had a victory, and the Greeks government suffered.
XIII. Lovers of Wisdom
a. Greeks loved poetry, music and logic and studied these subjects.
i. The Greeks called thinkers and philosophers lovers of wisdom.
ii. They believed they could discover laws that governed the universe.
b. Other philosophers were more interested in ethics and moral behavior.
i. They thought more on government and people�s behaviors and standards.
ii. The Sophists questioned accepted ideas about truth and justice.
c. Sophists urged people to be skillful speakers (rhetoric).
i. Some agreed with them and some did not.
ii. The turmoil of the Peloponnesian War led many young Athenians to follow the Sophists.
XIV. Death of a Philosopher
a. Socrates was a wondering teacher.
i. Most of what we know about him is from his student Plato.
ii. Spoke more dialogue than actually writing his thoughts down or making books.
b. The Socratic method � a trial and process used today.
i. To Socrates it was a
c. The trial and execution of Socrates ended fatal.
i. Socrates offered a simple and correct response but the jury took it as arrogance and condemned him to death.
XV. Ideas About Government
a. Plato emphasized the importance of reason and was a philosopher after Socrates dies.
i. He rejected democracy simply because it had condemned Socrates.
ii. He also thought that women could rank among the elite of his republic.
iii. His republic would take military training and raising children in communal centers for the good of the republic.
b. Aristotle was Plato�s most famous student.
i. He analyzed many different forms of government.
ii. He was also suspicious of democracy.
c. Aristotle set up a school for all branches of knowledge.
i. Many universities in Europe 1500 years later were largely based on the works of Aristotle.
XVI. The Search for Beauty and Order
a. Architecture was one of the greatest attributes the Greeks are known for.
i. The Parthenon represented a sense of perfect balance and order in the universe.
ii. Greek architecture has been widely admired for centuries since, and many modern buildings still use some ideas and techniques from ancient Greek construction.
b. In ancient times, many Greek people carved sculptures and statues.
i. Earlier sculptures were similar to Egyptian ones.
ii. Later sculptors made a new style that emphasized natural poses.
iii. They also created gods and goddesses that were made to look like perfect humans.
c. Painting on Greek pottery are the only Greek paintings to survive.
i. Each scene is designed to fit the shape of the pot perfectly.
XVII. Poetry and Drama
a. The beginnings of Greek drama evolved out of religious festivals.
i. Some were based upon popular myths and legends.
b. Tragedy was one of the most famous themes for many great playwrights.
i. Three popular writers: Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.
ii. Some famous plays written around tragedy were: The Oresteia and the Antigone.
c. Comedies were also made for theater but were mainly done to mock people or customs.
i. Many were written by Aristophanes.
XVIII. The Writing of History
a. The Greeks applied observation, reason, and logic to the study of history.
i. Herodotus visited many lands and collected information on people and places.
b. Thucydides wrote about the Peloponnesian War.
i. This was a much less happy subjects for the Greeks to listen to or read about.
ii. Although he was an Athenian, he tried to be fair to both sides when writing.
c. Both writers set standards for future historians.
i. Herodotus stressed the importance of research.
ii. Thucydides showed the need to avoid bias in recording the past.
XIX. Macedonian Ambitions
a. To the Greeks, Macedonia was a backward and dis-civilized land.
i. King Phillip took charge and made a strong military force.
ii. He dreamed of conquering and having lots of land.
b. King Philip wanted to take charge so he made threats, bribed and overpowered many Greek city-states.
i. Athens and Thebes joined together in an alliance but were still defeated.
c. Alexander took the throne.
XX. A Mighty Conqueror
a. Alexander was a good leader at a young age and received the title Alexander the Great.
i. Alexander made a conquest in Persia.
ii. Alexander also took control of Babylon.
b. Alexander moved on to India but had to surrender.
i. They were faced with troops on elephants and the soldiers refused to move onward.
c. Before Alexander the Great could set out again he became sick with a fever and died a sudden death.
i. No one could take Alexander�s place.
ii. Three emperors had to divide the kingdom into three parts.
XXI. The Legacy of Alexander
a. There was blending of cultures and Alexander�s conquests linked a vast area.
i. Gradually a blending of eastern and western cultures occurred.
ii. Hellenistic culture emerged � Greek, Persian, Egyptian, and Indian influences.
b. Alexandria is the city at the very heart of the Hellenistic world.
i. Made a good trade center.
ii. An enormous lighthouse was constructed and is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
c. The Hellenistic Period also opened up new opportunities for women.
i. More women learned to read and write.
ii. Some became poets and philosophers.
XXII. Hellenistic Civilization
a. New schools of thought were opened and influenced many.
i. Teachings of Zeno were made that stated whether desires or disappointment life brought be happy with what life gives you.
b. The Hellenistic age saw important advances in the sciences and mathematics.
i. Pythagoras and other groups of people developed formulas and techniques that are still used today.
ii. The ideas from this time period developed and have influenced many astronomers and mathematicians today such as Archimedes and Aristarchus.
c. Medicine was developed in Greece.
i. Hippocrates studied the causes of illness and tried to come up with cures.
ii. Doctors today take a similar oath to the one that they took in ancient times.
XXIII. Looking Ahead
a. During the Hellenistic period Rome came to dominate the Mediterranean world.
i. By this time the Greeks had already made many contributions to society.
b. Greek ideas about government and freedom have carried on to traditions today.
c. These achievements were especially remarkable since a scattering of tiny city-states whose bitter rivalries cost them their freedom and rights produced them