Download Nike - A Practice Packet on a Classical Civilization

Nike! A Practice Packet on a Classical Civilization – The Greeks
Global History and Geography I
Name: _____________________________
E. Napp
Date: _____________________________
Let’s start with geography!
1. Where is Greece located?
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2. Identify one geographic feature of Greece.
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3. How did this geographic feature affect the Greeks?
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4. Identify another geographic feature of Greece.
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5. How did this geographic feature affect the Greeks?
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6. What bodies of water surround Greece?
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7. What effect did the geography of ancient Greece have on its early development?
(1) The mountainous terrain led to the creation of independent city-states.
(2) A lack of natural seaports limited communication.
(3) An inland location hindered trade and colonization.
(4) Abundant natural resources encouraged self-sufficiency.
Questions:
1: Identify this famous building.
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2: What architectural feature, a feature
that we still use today, did the ancient
Greeks invent?
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Adapted from bbc.co.uk
“Athens was the largest city in ancient Greece. Athens controlled the land around it, a
large region called Attika. Between the many mountains were fertile valleys, where farmers
grew olives, grain, fruit and grapes.
Athens became rich and powerful, helped by Attika's valuable sources of silver, lead and
marble. In 510 B.C., a new way of government was invented in Athens. ‘Demokratia’,
from which we get our word 'democracy' which means 'rule by the people'. Any man with
full citizen rights could go to the assembly, where they could speak and vote freely. Public
debates like this decided how the city was run.
Athens had law courts with trial by jury. Juries were much larger than today, with
several hundred members. After listening to the evidence jurors voted by placing metal
discs into one of two jars - one for guilty, one for not guilty. Punishments were decided by
the court, and included the death penalty.
Women did not have citizen rights. They could not take part in the assembly, or vote, or
serve on juries. In wealthy families girls were educated to run the household of servants
and slaves, and were usually married by the age of 13. In poorer families women worked
alongside men, farming in the fields or running the family business.
Between a quarter and a third of Athens 300,000 population were slaves. These were men
and women captured in wars or born into slavery. Many slaves had special skills, such as
nurses and teachers, while others had the hardest and most unpleasant work to do. It was
common for a rich household to have many slaves.
Athens had yearly festivals for athletics, drama and religious occasions. The city paid for
these using taxes, but the wealthiest citizens of Athens were obliged to give extra help.
Rich citizens considered it an honor to pay the performers' fees in the many drama
festivals. Similarly they may have to serve as captain of a warship for a year, paying the
crew and making repairs.”
Questions:
1. Why was Athens rich and powerful?
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2. What political system did the ancient Athenians invent?
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3. What could women and slaves not do?
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4. Provide two facts about Athenian slaves.
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5. How did Athenian juries differ from juries in the United States today?
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6. How did the city of Athens pay for its many festivals? _________________________
While Athens was trying democracy as a form of
government, its rival Sparta had two kings. One king
might stay at home, while the other was away fighting
battles. Fighting battles was what the Spartans did best.
Greeks said that in a battle one Spartan was worth
several other men.
Adapted from bbc.co.uk
Questions:
1: Why did Sparta have
two kings?
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2: Why did the
Spartans have helots?
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3: When did a Spartan
boy leave his family
home?
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4: Describe a Spartan
boy’s education.
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5: Why was it tough
being a Spartan?
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6: What did Spartan
mothers tell their sons?
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The Spartans spent so much time training for battle
that they would have starved without slaves called
helots. The helots worked on the Spartans' farms. They
grew the food for the Spartan soldiers and their
families.
Although every Spartan man had a farm, he spent a
lot of his time preparing for war. He became a soldier
when he was 20. However, a boy's training began much
earlier, when he left his family home at the age of 7, and
went to live in an army school. Discipline was tough. He
was allowed only one tunic, and had to walk barefoot
even in cold weather. He was taught how to live rough
and steal food. He was warned it was foolish to get
drunk, like some other Greeks did. Men lived in army
camps even after they got married.
It was tough being a Spartan. Sickly babies were
killed. Children ran around naked. Boys practiced
fighting and did athletics. Girls also did physical
exercises. Spartan women had more freedom than other
Greek women - a wife ran the family farm and gave
orders to the helots or slaves. Old people too were
shown more respect in Sparta than in other Greek
states.
Spartan mothers told their sons before they left for
battle, "Come back with your shield, or on it." Dead
Spartans were carried home on their shields. Only a
coward would drop his shield and run away.
Would you like to live in Sparta? Explain your answer.
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“Sparta’s most famous battle was Thermopylae. The year was 480 BC. A huge Persian
army was trying to invade Greece. Barring the way at the mountain pass of
Thermopylae were 300 Spartan soldiers led by King Leonidas, along with a few
hundred other Greeks.
The Spartans' brave fight lasted three days. One story says that after they broke their
swords, the Spartans fought the Persians with their bare hands and teeth! In the end,
Leonidas and his Spartans lay dead. The Persians marched on to capture Athens. But
soon afterwards the Greeks defeated the Persian fleet at Salamis.”
Describe the story of the 300.
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Socrates quotes:
“Remember, no human condition is ever
permanent. Then you will not be
overjoyed in good fortune nor too
scornful in misfortune.”
“An unexamined life is not worth living.”
Explain the meaning of Socrates’ quotes:
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“Know thyself.”
Why did Socrates encourage people to
“know thyself”? ___________________
Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were important Greek philosophers. How do philosophers
challenge people to live lives of meaning?
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Word Bank:
Mountains, Polis, Cultural Diffusion, Phoenicians, Peninsula, Athens, Women, Men,
Columns, Sparta, Helots, Socrates, Olympics, Homer, Peloponnesian, Classical
The Legacy of the Greeks
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Trial by Jury
Greek Myths
Democracy
The word 'democracy' is Greek. It means 'government by the people. We have a
form of democracy in Britain, and this is a legacy of the Athenians and their
assemblies and councils.
Tragedy and Comedy
Theater
The word 'theater' is Greek. Most modern theatres follow the Greek plan.
The Olympics
The first Olympic Games were held in 776 BC at the Greek city of Olympia.
Marathon
Pheidippides ran from Athens to Sparta to ask for help against the Persians just
before the Battle of the Marathon (490 BC).
Architecture
Throughout the world, buildings are frequently constructed in the style of Ancient
Greece. The British Museum is an example of this.
The first alphabet with vowels
The Ancient Greeks played an important part in the development of the alphabet.
The first two letters of the Greek alphabet - alpha and beta - have given us the word
'alphabet'.
The Greeks developed a classical civilization.
A classical civilization is a civilization that developed important ideas and inventions that
still influence people today.
So, if you were asked, “What have the ancient Greeks done for us anyway?, what would
you say. What have the ancient Greeks done for us?
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