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Module 8– Ancient Greece

Section Notes

Geography and the Early Greeks

The Glory of Athens

Athens and Sparta

Greek Mythology and Literature

Government in Athens

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Video

Democracy

Images

Early Trading Cultures

Olympian Gods

Aesop

Quick Facts

Government in Athens

Democracy Then and Now

Chapter 8 Visual Summary

Maps

Greece: Physical

Greek City-States and

Colonies, c. 600 BC

History Close-up

Democracy in Action

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Geography and the Early Greeks

The Big Idea

Greece’s geography and its nearness to the sea strongly influenced the development of trade and the growth of city-states.

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Main Ideas

• Geography helped shape early Greek civilizations.
• Trading cultures developed in the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations.
• The Greeks created city-states for protection and security.

Main Idea 1:� Geography helped shape early Greek civilizations.

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• Mountains cover much of Greece, so contact with other villages was difficult.
• People created their own governments and ways of life.
• People settled in the flat areas along the coast and in river valleys.

• Because travel was so difficult inland, Greeks turned to the seas on all sides.
• They became skilled shipbuilders and sailors.

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• The sea became a source of food as well as a way of trading with other communities.
• They also exchanged ideas with other cultures.

Main Idea 2:� Trading cultures developed in the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations.

Minoans

• They spent much of their time at sea, trading in the Mediterranean.
• Ships carried goods such as wood, olive oil, and pottery all around the eastern Mediterranean.
• They became the victims of a huge volcano that erupted north of Crete, on the Island of Santorini.
• They were not considered to be Greek, since they didn’t speak Greek.

Mycenaeans

• They were the first people to be considered Greek.
• They lived inland and built fortresses.
• They were more violent in their trade.
• They took over Crete and became the major traders in the eastern Mediterranean.
• They developed colonies in northern Greece and Italy, from which they shipped goods around the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

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Main Idea 3:� The Greeks created city-states for protection and security.

• During the Dark Ages, the Greeks started joining together in small groups for protection.
• These groups set up independent city-states. The Greek word for city-state is polis.
• The creation of city-states marks the beginning of Greece’s classical age, an age marked by great achievements.

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Life in a City-State

• A city-state was usually built around a strong fortress on top of a high hill called an acropolis.
• The town around the acropolis was surrounded by walls for protection. People no longer had to fear raiders.
• Life in the city focused on the marketplace, or agora.
• The city-state became the foundation for Greek civilization and gave the Greeks an identity.

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City-States and Colonization

• Life in Greece became more settled, and people agreed that the Greeks should establish colonies.
• Before long, groups from city-states around Greece began setting up colonies in distant lands.
• They spread all around the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

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Patterns of Trade

• Although the colonies were independent, they often traded with city-states on the mainland.
• Trade made the city-states much richer.
• Soon the Greeks had become the greatest traders in the whole Aegean region.

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Government in Athens

The Big Idea

The people of Athens tried many different forms of government before creating a democracy.

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Main Ideas

• Aristocrats and tyrants ruled early Athens.
• Athens created the world’s first democracy.
• Ancient democracy was different than modern democracy.

Main Idea 1:�Aristocrats and tyrants �ruled early Athens.

• Athens was the city where democracy was born, but it started out as an oligarchy, a government in which only a few people hold power.
• A group of rich landowners called aristocrats held power.
• As a result of rebels trying to overthrow the aristocrats, harsh laws were created by a man named Draco.
• A man named Solon created a set of laws allowing all free men to be citizens, people who had the right to participate in government.
• Peisistratus overthrew the oligarchy, however, and became the ruler of Athens. He was called a tyrant, a leader who held power through the use of force. Tyrants were usually good, not harsh, leaders in ancient Greece.

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The Use of Standard Currency

• Greek tyrants encouraged the development of a common currency to make trade easier.
• Silver coins were minted.
• A common standard of weights and measures was established.
• Athens’ coins became used widely throughout Greece.
• Corinth also minted its own coins, which helped it become a dominant city-state.

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Main Idea 2:�Athens created the world’s �first democracy.

• A leader named Cleisthenes, a member of one of the most powerful families in Athens, overthrew the aristocracy and established the world’s first democracy.
• For this reason, he is considered the father of democracy.

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Democracy under Cleisthenes

• Under Cleisthenes, all citizens in Athens had the right to participate in the assembly, or gathering of citizens, that created the city’s laws.
• They needed many citizens to participate and sometimes had to go searching for people to be in the assembly.

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Changes in Athenian Democracy

• As time passed, citizens got more power, such as serving on juries.
• Athens reached its height under Pericles, who encouraged people to take pride in their city.
• He also began to pay people who served in public office or on juries.

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The End of Democracy in Athens

• Athens was conquered by the Macedonians and fell under their influence.
• The king ruled like a dictator. No one could make decisions without his approval.

• The assembly still met to make laws, but it had to be careful not to upset the king.
• Eventually, a new king took over and ended Athenian democracy altogether.

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Main Idea 3:� Ancient democracy was different than modern democracy.

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• All citizens in Athens could participate directly in the government, which was called a direct democracy.
• Each vote counted, and the majority ruled.

• The United States is too large for direct democracy to work for the whole country.
• Instead, we have a representative democracy.

In a representative democracy, also called a republic, citizens elect officials to represent them in the government. These officials then make the laws.

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Sparta and Athens

The Big Idea

The two most powerful city-states in Greece, Sparta and Athens, had very different cultures and became bitter enemies in the 400s BC.

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Main Ideas

• The Spartans built a military society to provide security and protection.
• The Athenians admired the mind and the arts in addition to physical abilities.
• Sparta and Athens fought over who should have power and influence in Greece.

Main Idea 1:� The Spartans built a military society to provide security and protection.

• Daily life in Sparta was dominated by the army, and boys were trained from an early age to be soldiers.
• Spartan men reached full citizenship at age 30 and could then move back home, but they stayed in the army until they turned 60.
• Courage, strength, self-discipline, and obedience were the most important qualities to have.
• Because men were often at war, women had more rights than other Greek women.
• They ran the household and owned property.
• They also received physical training and sometimes competed with men in sporting events.

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Government

• Sparta was officially ruled by two kings who jointly led the army, but elected officials actually had more power than the kings.
• These officials handled dealings between Sparta and other city-states.
• Sparta’s government was set up to control the city’s helots, or slaves.

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Main Idea 2:�The Athenians admired the mind and the arts in addition to physical abilities.

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Girls and Women in Athens

• Sparta’s main rival in Greece was Athens.
• Though they also worked to improve their bodies, they had to devote only two years to the army.
• They learned to read, write, count, and sing.
• Wealthy boys continued their education with a private tutor.
• Boys from poor families usually became farmers.

• Unlike boys, girls received almost no education, because men did not think they needed to be educated.
• Athenian women had fewer rights than women in many other city-states; in fact, they hardly had any at all.

Boys and Men in Athens

Main Idea 3:�Sparta and Athens fought over who should have power and influence in Greece.

• Sparta and Athens worked together to win the Persian Wars.
• After the Persian Wars, city-states joined an alliance, which historians call the Delian League.
• “Alliance” means they agreed to work together.
• Sparta formed its own alliance, called the Peloponnesian League.

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Greek Mythology and Literature

The Big Idea

The ancient Greeks created great myths and works of literature that influence the way we �speak and write today.

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Main Ideas

• The Greeks created myths to explain the world.
• Ancient Greek literature provides some of the world’s greatest poems and stories.
• Greek literature lives on and influences our world even today.

Main Idea 1:�The Greeks created myths to �explain the world.

• Instead of scientific explanations, the Greeks used mythology to explain things.
• Mythology is a body of stories about gods and heroes that try to explain how the world works.
• They believed gods caused things like volcanic eruptions and the changing seasons.
• To keep the gods happy, they built great temples. The Greeks expected help when they needed it in return.

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Heroes in Mythology

• Many Greek myths told about the adventures of great heroes.
• Some heroes were real, while others were not.
• Some of the major heroes were Theseus, Jason, and Hercules.
• Theseus traveled to Crete and killed the minotaur, a half-human, half-bull monster.
• Jason sailed across the seas in search of great treasure.
• Hercules was the most famous hero. He fought many monsters and performed nearly impossible tasks.

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Main Idea 2:� Ancient Greek literature provides some of the world’s greatest poems and stories.

• Among the earliest Greek writings are two epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer.
• The Iliad tells the story of the last years of the Trojan War.
• The Odyssey describes the challenges that Odysseus faced on his way home from the war.
• These poems were central to the education system and influenced later writing as well.

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Lyric Poetry and Fables

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• Some poems were set to music.
• The writers of these poems were called lyric poets, after their instrument, the lyre.

• The most famous lyric poet was a woman named Sappho.
• Her poems were beautiful and emotional. They spoke of love and relationships with her friends and family.

• Other Greeks told short stories that taught the reader lessons about life or gave advice on how to live. These stories were called fables.
• Aesop is famous for fables such as “The Tortoise and the Hare” and “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.”

Main Idea 3:� Greek literature lives on and influences our world even today.

• The most obvious way we see the influence of the Greeks is in our language.
• Many English words and expressions come from mythology, such as “odyssey” and “titanic.”
• Greek myths have inspired artists and writers for centuries.
• Moviemakers have borrowed some of these stories.
• Mythological references are also common among names of sports teams.

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Greek Achievements

The Big Idea

Ancient Greeks made lasting contributions in the arts, philosophy, and science.

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Main Ideas

• The Greeks made great contributions to the arts.
• The teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle are the basis of modern philosophy.
• In science, the Greeks made key discoveries in math, medicine, and engineering.

Main Idea 1:�The Greeks made great contributions �to the arts.

• Greek statues and vases look as though they could come to life at any time, because Greek artists wanted to show how beautiful people could be.
• Greek paintings are known for their realism and detail.
• The Greeks made temples with rows of tall columns rounded in the middle so they appear perfectly straight.
• The Parthenon was their most impressive temple.
• Thucydides wrote great “TRUTHFUL” accounts wars and battles
• The Greeks excelled at writing.
• They created dramas, or plays.
• The Greeks were the first to write about history.

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Main Idea 2:� The teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle are the basis of modern philosophy.

• Socrates taught by asking questions, a technique we call the Socratic method.
• He wanted people to question their beliefs and look for knowledge. This angered and frightened people.
• He was arrested and condemned to death for questioning the authority of the gods.
• Plato and Aristotle followed after Socrates in their pursuit for knowledge and deeper understanding.

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Plato and Aristotle

• Plato had been a student of Socrates.
• Plato created a school, the Academy, to discuss ideas.
• He also wrote The Republic, which described his ideal society.

• Aristotle was Plato’s student.
• He taught about living life in moderation, or balance.
• He believed moderation was based on reason, or clear and ordered thinking.

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Main Idea 3:� In science, the Greeks made key discoveries in math, medicine, and engineering.

• Euclid spent his life studying mathematics, especially geometry.
• Greek doctors studied the human body to understand how it worked.
• Hippocrates was a Greek doctor known for his ideas about how doctors should behave.
• Engineers like Archimedes made great discoveries, such as the water screw, which brought water to the fields.

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