Chapter 4:i

The Rise of Ancient Greece

Mmmm…Greece…

Gree

Greek culture grew

around the

Aegean Sea.

The Greek mainland has

mountains that isolate and protect it.

The Greek mainland is characterized by many natural harbors, coastal plains, and interior mountains. How will this affect cultural

diffusion?

Is this helpful or detrimental to their development?

In fact, no place in Greece is

farther than 50 miles from the coast! How does their geography

determine their livelihood?

Ur!Ur!

I like the San

Diego Padres.

On the island of Crete, the Minoans built a successful civilization.

They earned a living

through sea trade.

Minoan Snake Goddess

From 2500 BC to 1450 BC, the Minoans dominated trade and kept the sea free from pirates in the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas.

Aargh! ThemMinoans took

me booty!!

The Minoan’s primary deity was a female goddess. They had more female deities than male ones. This may explain the high status of women in their culture.

The end of the Minoans is unclear. They may have been destroyed by earthquake induced tsunamis...

…or invaded by the Mycenaean civilization.

They came from the

mainland of Greece.

The Mycenaeans migrated from central Asia about 2000BC to the Balkan Peninsula and intermarried with the local Hellenes.

Each Mycenaean kingdom was built on a hilltop with stone walls around it. Although Mycenae was the leading city-state, there was little cooperation without an external threat.

Are youthreatening

me?

The Mycenaeans eventually adopted many of the Minoan traditions, including the worship of their “Earth Mother” diety.

Censored

But they foughtamong themselvesand were overrun

by the Doriansfrom the mainland.

The next 300 years are known as the Greeks’ “Dark Age”. Trade virtually stopped, poverty increased, and the Dorians lost skills like writing and craft making.

...Writing?

Thousands of these people fled to Ionia (on the Eastern coast of the Aegean). Finally, about 750 BC, the Ionians reintroduced writing (the new Pheonician alphabet) and skills to the mainland Greeks.

EHS English Curriculum

When the Greeks re-learned writing, they composed their poems that had been passed from generation to generation, like the Iliad and the Odyssey

?????

A blind poet named Homer wrote these most famous of all Greek epics, set during the Trojan War.

Coincidence?

Like a fox!!

????

Did Troy ever exist? We still argue about it. It may have been in Asia Minor, west of what is now Istanbul.

(Near the Dardanelles, the water route from Aegean to Sea of

Mamara)

The Iliad is about the Mycenaean War against Troy (a rival trading empire). The Odyssey describes a Mycenaean king’s 10 year trip home after the war.

Are we there yet?I hafta’ potty.

These epics were very important in molding Hellenic civilization (the Greeks). The values promoted by the epics became the centerpieces of Greek culture (like martial prowess- the ability to kick butt.)

They also promoted:

1. Love of Nature

2. The importance of the Husband-Wife relationship

3. Loyalty between friends

4. Dignity and the importance of excellence despite circumstances

More than any other civilization, the Greeks’ gods personified human behavior. They even looked 100% human, married, had kids, murdered...

Greek gods had both Minoan and Mycenaean elements. They had super-human powers, but were still subject to jealousy and other human frailties.

Greeks tried to be like their gods, both mentally and physically. The gods were thought to interact with humans as well.

The number one chief god

in their pantheon was

Zeus.

Greeks believed that he and the other 11 most important gods lived on Mount Olympus, an actual mountain in Greece.

Why can’twe move to the beach?!

Oh shutup, Hera!

The Greeks were probably the most knowledgeable about human behavior (even the Oracle at Delphi had “Know Thyself” carved at the entrance).

Socrates said it, too.

The Greek god Hades (Pluto for the Romans) was said to rule the underworld.

I accept your sacrifice tothe lord of the underworld!

Apollo, Zeus’s son, was the god of prophecy and drove the sun across the sky every day in his chariot.

Apollo supposedly revealed hidden knowledge to those who asked the Oracle at Delphi. Priests and priestesses would “interpret” Apollo’s answers to questions.

Festivals were of tremendous importance to the early Greeks. Examples:OlympicsFestival of DionysusPlays/Tragedies

The Olympics were held every 4 years to test men (free men who

spoke Greek) against each other in traditionally military-type

competitions: running, javelin, wrestling, discus, chariot

racing/riding, equestrian, boxing, “ultimate fighting challenge” type

events (pankration), etc...

The winners got an olive wreath signifying victory (or to the horse-

owner in equestrian events).

The festivals of Dionysus, which honored this god of wine and fertility,

celebrated the harvest.

They often occurred in open spaces where the people could chant choruses about Dionysus.

…We’re drunk andwill procreate soon!

These choruses turned into Greek

plays and tragedies. 3 playwrites brought 3

tragedies and one satire (satyr) to be performed by the general public.

Dionysus was also known as Bachus, from which we get the word bacchanalia (a drunken revelry or orgy).

Dionysus rulesman…huk, huk,blorrrrrrfff…D

We are the direct descendants of the Greeks in:

plays recreation

military tradition trade

government ideology

technology