Download Ancient Greek Mythology and Literature study guide

World Civ
Greek Mythology and Literature Study Guide
Name ___________________________
1.
Ancient Greek mythology were stories about the gods and
heroes that were use to explain what?
A.
How the world works – natural or historic events.
2.
What are some of the events the Gods were given credit for?
A.
Volcanoes attributed to Hephaestus and his underground
forge, Demeter creating the seasons or Apollo pulling the
sun through the sky.
3.
What are ways the Greeks tried to keep the Gods happy?
What did the Greeks expect in return?
A.
To honor the Gods, Greeks built temples in their honor. In
return, they wanted help from the Gods when they needed it
– good harvest, healing, easy childbirth.
4.
What is the story of the Oracle of Delphi?
A.
People in need of help would go to the city of Delphi and
spoke to the Oracle, a female priestess of Apollo that they
thought the God would give answers to. She was so popular
that even Greek leaders would seek advice in running their
city-states.
5.
Describe the role of heroes in Greek mythology. Who was
the most famous and what was his story?
A.
Heroes could be real or imaginary and they went on great
adventures. They all had special abilities and would fight
terrible monsters. Each city had their own hero, usually
someone from there. The most famous was Hercules who
fought many fierce monsters and performed almost
impossible tasks – for instance killing the Hydra.
6.
Who was Homer and what did he write about?
A.
Homer was the greatest of ancient Greece and he wrote to
epics – the Iliad and the Odyssey. The Iliad was the story of
the last years of the Trojan War and the Odyssey was the tale
of the hero Odysseus trying to get home from the war.
7.
What was Lyric Poetry? Who was Sappho?
A.
Lyric poetry is poetry that is set to music. Poets would play a
lyre while reading the poetry (lyre-lyric). Sappho, a female
poet was the most famous of the lyric poets. Beautiful and
emotional, most of her poems were about relationships and
love.
8.
Who was Aesop? What are fables?
A.
We are not sure if Aesop was real or made up, but he is
credited with many fables – stories that teach the reader a
lesson.
9.
Describe the Greeks influence on language.
A.
Many Greek words are used in modern expressions such as
titanic, odyssey or in names of places such as the Atlas
mountains, Aegean Sea or Juno.
10.
How did mythology inspire the arts?
A.
Heroes and Gods show up in movies, books and advertising –
even business names or brands.
11.
What are other areas of our culture that the Greeks have
influenced?
A.
Food, government, business, etc.
12.
What heroic abilities or traits do Achilles, Hector and
Odysseus share?
A.
They are all brave warriors.
13.
What were some of the main Gods of Greek mythology?
A.
Apollo, Zeus, Ares, Hermes, Athena, etc.