Download The Culture of Ancient Greece - Hewlett

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Journey Across Time Chapter 5, Section 1
Pages 154-163
* Myths are traditional stories about Gods and heroes that
expressed the religious beliefs of the Greeks
* The 12 most important gods lived on Mount Olympus- the
highest point in Greece
* The Greeks believed that the gods and goddesses affected
their lives directly and controlled nature; with a good or bad
harvest, an earthquake or flood, volcano or bad storm- based
on the approval or disapproval of the humans behavior
* Explains why the most impressive building in Greek cities
were religious temples- usually on the Acropolis- the summit
or highest point in the city
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* Mount Olympus home to the 12 most important gods- is the
highest mountain in Greece
* Gods had special powers but were not all powerful- they
looked and acted human; they married, had children,
quarreled and fought wars
* Greeks followed rituals ( a set of actions carried out in a fixed
way) to win the gods favor
* Greeks prayed and gave the gods gifts; in return they asked for
good fortune
* The Olympics was the festival held to honor the chief god Zeus
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* An oracle is a sacred shrine where the priest or priestess
spoke for the gods when asked a question
* The most famous was the oracle at the temple of Apollo at
Delphi
* People would bring their questions to the priest there who
would ask a priestess seated on a tripod over volcanic gases a
question and then interpret the answer.
* The Greek religion taught that a person had a set fate or
destiny, but believed that the gods could supply them with
prophesies to warn them in time to change it
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* The Greeks had many festivals to honor their gods
* They hope that these festivals would persuade the gods
to grant them good fortune
* The Olympic games were a festival celebrated for Zeus
* The theatre was developed to please the gods and plays
written to bring them honor
* The plays were performed at the festivals of the gods
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* Greek poetry and fables teach Greek values
* These poems and stories are the oldest in the Western world
* They are the models for countless tales including those written
by William Shakespeare
* The earliest stories are known as epics; long poems about
heroic deeds
* Homer wrote the first great epic poems, the Iliad and the
Odyssey during the 700’s BCE
* These stories are based on the stories of a war between Greece
and Troy, a city that once existed in northwestern Turkey
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* Homer’s epic poem the Iliad, tells the tale of the prince of
Troy who kidnaps the wife of the king of Sparta (Helen)
* The king of Mycenae and the brother of the king of Sparta
lead the Greeks in an attack on Troy that lasts ten years
* The war ends when the Greeks send in troops in a hollow
wooden horse that is presented as a peace offering gift to
the Trojans
* Homers stories taught the Greek values of courage and
honor. They also taught the importance of loyalty to friends
and to value the relationship between husband and wife.
* Homer’s heroes were role models for young Greek boys.
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* Historians agree that Homer was a real person, but still debate
whether he wrote the epics alone or got help
* Historians have speculated that he was from Iona, was blind, or
even a wanderer
* Legends tell of Homer’s strong influence on his readers
* Alexander the Great is said to have slept with a copy of the Iliad
under his pillow.
* He used the term “aoidos” for poet, translated it means singer
* This suggests that poems written at this time were normally
sung, memorized and recited, not written down
* Homer created a new and different style of epic poetry, these
tales are long and involve complex characters, dramatic action
and interesting events.
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* Aesop was a Greek slave
* He created fables in about 550 BCE
* A fable is a short tale that teachers a lesson
* Most characters in fables are animals that talk and act like
humans
* Each fable points out human flaws and strengths and ends with
a moral
* The Tortoise and the Hare is one of the best known fables. The
moral is “slow and steady wins the race”
* For about 200 years these fables were a part of Greece’s oral
tradition before they were written down
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* Greek drama still shapes entertainment today- where do you
think YouTube and Netflix came from?
* Drama is a story told by actors who pretend to be
characters in the story
* These actors speak, show emotion and imitate the actions of
the characters they represent
* Today’s movies, plays and television shows are all examples of
drama
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* The Greeks performed plays in outdoor theatres as part of religious
festivals
* They developed two kinds of dramas- comedies and tragedies
* Tragedy- a play where a person struggles to over come difficulties
but fails and the story has an unhappy ending
* Comedy-the story also involves a struggle but has a happy ending
* Dramas dealt with big questions such as: What is the nature of good and
evil?, What rights should people have?, What role do the gods play in
our lives?
* Sophocles-A general and a writer of plays; he developed the genre; he
also painted backdrops for the first time
* Sophocles wrote two of the most famous plays- Oedipus Rex and
Antigone; where he asks, “Is it better to follow orders or to do what is
right?”
* Euripides was a later playwright who tried to take drama beyond
heroes and gods. He showed war as cruel and women and children as its
victims.
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* Greek artists wanted people to see reason, moderation, balance
and harmony in their work. For example look at the art on Greek
pottery
* The most important architecture was the temple; the Parthenon
in Athens is the best known example (the goddess Athena’s
Temple)
* Large columns supported many Greek buildings- Doric, Ionic and
Corinthian were the most popular styles.
* These Greek style columns can be found today in the USA on the
White House and Capitol Building in Washington, DC
* Temples were decorated with sculpture created to show the
ideal version of human perfection and beauty.
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