WHI.05, pt.2: Ancient Greece: Golden Age to

Hellenism

Objectivesp. 069

WHI.05: The student will demonstrate knowledge of ancient Greece in terms of its impact on Western civilization by

a.evaluating the significance of the Peloponnesian War;

b.characterizing life in Athens during the golden Age of Pericles;

c.citing contributions in drama, poetry, history, sculpture, architecture, science, mathematics, and philosophy, with emphasis on Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle;

d.explaining the conquest of Greece by Macedonia and the spread of Hellenistic culture by Alexander the Great

Essential Understandingsp. 70

1. Competition between Sparta and Athens for control of Greece helped cause the Peloponnesian War

2. Athenian culture during the Classic Era, became one of the foundation stones of Western civilization

3. The Macedonian conquest of Greece followed the weakening of Greek defenses during the Peloponnesian Wars

4. Alexander the Great adopted Greek culture and spread Hellenistic influences throughout his vast empire

Essential Questionsp. 70

1. Why was the Peloponnesian War important to the spread of Greek culture?

2. Why was the leadership of Pericles important to the development of Athenian life and Greek culture?

3. What were some important contributions of Greek culture to Western civilization?

4. How did the empire of Alexander the Great establish a basis for the spread of Hellenistic culture?

Why do I need to know this?p. 70

1. At its height, Greece set lasting standards in art, politics, literature, and philosophy that are still adhered to today.

2. Alexander’s empire extended across three continents that today consist of many nations and diverse cultures.

3. Western civilization today continues to be influenced by Greek and Hellenistic cultures.

Democracy and Greece’s Golden Age

p. 071

Pericles’ Three Goals for Athensp. 071

1. create a stronger democracy – increased the number of paid public officials, so more poor people were able to participate

a. direct democracy – a form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives

b. made Athens one of the most democratic governments in history 2. hold and strengthen the Athenian empire – used money from the Delian League’s treasury to build

Athens’ 200-ship navy into the strongest in the Mediterranean3. glorify Athens – used the money from the Delian League to rebuild and beautify Athens

a. took 15 years to build the Parthenon – temple dedicated to Athena

Delian League

Parthenon

Statue of

Athena

Greek Sculpturep. 071

1. classical art – values order, balance, and proportion2. within the Parthenon stood a giant statue of Athena (over 38 feet tall), sculpted by Phidias3. sculptors created figures that were graceful, strong, and perfectly formed – did not show laughter or

anger, only serenity4. tried to capture the grace of the idealized human body in motion

Greek Columnsp. 071

1. Doric – the simplest of the Greek columns, has 20 sides and no base2. Ionic – a little more decorative and taller than Doric; has 24 flutes – carved lines from the top to the

bottom; has two scrolls (swirls) at the top and it has a base; isn’t straight – it’s narrower at the top and bottom and swells a little in the middle

3. Corinthian – most decorative of the columns; has 24 flutes and a base like the Ionic; has four scrolls and two rows of leaves at the top; roofs are usually flat

Greek Dramap. 071

1. invented drama built the first theaters in the west2. Tragedy – a serious drama about common themes such as love, hate, war, or betrayal

a. famous tragedians – Aeschylus (The Oresteia), Sophocles (Oedipus Rex) and Euripedes (Medea)3. Comedy – contained scenes filled with slapstick situations and crude humor

a. famous comedian – Aristophanes (The Birds and Lysistrata)

Peloponnesian Wars

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Sparta v. Athensp. 073

1. Sparta declared war against Athens in 431 B.C.2. Athens had the strongest sea power in Greece, Sparta had the advantage on land3. Pericles’s strategy was to avoid land battles and wait behind the city walls for an opportunity to strike

Sparta’s allies from the sea4. grain boats carried in the plague and it killed roughly one-third to one-half of Athens ’s population,

including Pericles5. Athens suffered a huge defeat at Syracuse (one of Sparta’s allies)6. Athens surrendered in 404 B.C.7. Athens lost its empire and general confidence in democratic government began to falter

Delian League

Peloponnesian War

Philosophers Search for Truth

p. 073

Socratesp. 073

1. believed that absolute standards did exist for truth and justice2. encouraged Greeks to go further and question themselves and their moral character3. when he was 70 years old, he was brought to trial for “corrupting the youth of Athens” and “neglecting

the city’s gods.”4. condemned to death

Platop. 073

1. one of Socrates’ students2. wrote The Republic – sets forth his vision of the perfectly governed society, an oligarchy and that society

should be ruled by a philosopher king3. founded a school called The Academy

Aristotlep. 073

1. one of Plato’s students2. invented a method for arguing according to the rules of logic3. worked in the fields of psychology, physics and biology4. his most famous pupil will be Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great

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Philip IIp. 075

1. ruled a Greek speaking country to the north of Greece called Macedonia 2. dreamed of taking control of Greece and taking revenge on the Persians for invading Greece3. the Athenian orator Demosthenes tried to warn the Greeks of the Macedonian threat4. Philip conquered Greece in 338 BC5. never got the chance to invade Persia (assassinated at his daughter’s wedding)

Alexander the Greatp. 075

1. became king at 20 years old; studied under Aristotle2. excellent military leader3. invaded Persia and smashed the Persian army at every battle; Persians led by Darius III4. marched into Egypt where he was welcomed as a liberator and crowned a pharaoh

a. founded the city of Alexandria5. Alexander’s victory at Gaugamela ended Persia’s power

a. found Darius III dead, assassinated by one of his own governors6. Alexander’s empire reached all the way to India7. Alexander’s army refused to go any further, so they returned to Babylon8. in 323 B.C., Alexander died and his top three generals divided up the empire

Alexander the Great

1.Son of Philip II and his 4th wife Olympia (she was not Macedonian, she was from the small Greek city Epirus)2.One eye was blue, one was brown3.A horse trader from Thessaly brought a wild horse for King Philip to buy. The horse was too wild for anyone to mount, but the 10-year-old Alexander calmed it and rode him.4.Led his first battle at 16 years old.5.Never lost a battle6.Megalomaniac - believed he was the son of Zeus7.Alcoholic8.Died just before his 33rd birthday

Siege of Tyre1. Alexander wanted to worship at the Temple of Hercules. Tried negotiating with the Tyrians twice..2. Tyrians threw his messengers from the walls (200 feet high).3. Built land bridge (half mile long). Had no navy at first, but defeated the Persians and used their ships.4. 7 month siege5. All males of fighting age – about 5,000 – crucified.6. All else, about 30,000 women and children, were sold into slavery

• Roughly 3000 miles wide

• His empire was 5.2 million square kilometers – the US is 9.8 million square kilometers

Alexander’s Legacyp. 075

1. thousands of Greek artists, merchants, and officials followed him during his conquests2. Alexander adopted Persian dress and customs and married a Persian woman3. included Persians and people from other lands in his army4. a new culture emerged from the blend of Greek, Egyptian and Eastern customs

Spread of Hellenistic Culture

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Hellenistic Culture in Alexandriap. 077

1. Hellenistic culture – blending of Greek, Egyptian, Persian, and Indian cultures2. Location – occupied a strategic site on the western edge of the Nile delta

a. population exceeded over half million; Greeks, Jews, Egyptian mingled with visitors from the rest of Africa, Persia and India

3. Attractionsa. broad avenues were lined with statues of Greek godsb. magnificent royal palaces overlooked the harborc. an enormous stone lighthouse called the Pharosd. a museum that contained art galleries, a zoo, botanical gardens and even a dining halle. the library – contained over half a million papyrus scrolls and was the first true research library in

the world

Library and Pharos Lighthouse

Astronomyp. 077

1. Aristarchus estimated that the sun was 300 times larger than the earth (1,300,000 times the size of the earth

a. proposed the earth and other planets revolved around the sun2. Ptolemy incorrectly place the earth at the center of the solar system and his view will be accepted for

14 centuries

Math and Sciencep. 077

1. Euclid – highly regarded mathematician who opened a school of geometry in Alexandria2. Pythagoras - philosopher, musician, and mathematician who is credited with the formulation of the

Pythagorean theorem (a2 + b2 =c2)3. Archimedes – explained the law of the lever and invented the compound pulley to lift heavy object

a. also invented the Archimedes screw, a device that raised water from the ground, and a catapult4. Hippocrates - known as the father of Western medicine; founded a school of medicine; made medicine

its own distinct field (earlier it was part of religion); attributed with establishing an ethical code in practicing medicine

Archimedes

The Archimedes Claw

Historiansp. 079

1. Herodotus - father of history; first historian to systematically collect data and test materials for accuracy

a. wrote The Histories, which tells about the Persian Wars2. Thucydides - wrote about the Peloponnesian War; father of political realism which describes the

relations between countries as based on military strength rather than ethics and morals

Sculpturep. 079

1. Colossus of Rhodes – bronze statue that stood over 100 feet tall2. created realistic and emotional works; also created more natural works3. carved ordinary people such as an old, wrinkled peasant woman

Hellenic vs. Hellenistic Art

Hellenic vs. Hellenistic Art

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Hellenistic Sculpturep. 079

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