Greeks Period 2

I. Early Greek Civilizations A.The mountains and the seas were important geographic influences on Greece. The many mountain ranges separated the small, independent Greek communities, causing them to develop different ways.

B.The long seacoast encouraged sea trade. Mycenaean (my see knee an) civilization was named for the fortified site, Mycenae (my see nay). The Mycenaean civilization flourished between 1600 and 1100 B.C.

C.Powerful monarchs lived in fortified palaces built on hills and surrounded by stone walls. Homer recorded the military adventures of the Mycenaeans in his epic poems, the Illiad and Odyssey.

D.Mycenaean civilization collapsed around 1100 B.C. Greece then entered a Dark Age when population declined and there was less food. Few records remain from this period, which lasted from 1100 to 750 B.C.

E.The works of Homer appeared at the end of the Dark Age. The Illiad and Odyssey are epic poems. They tell the story of the kings of Troy and Mycenae, the Trojan War, and several Greek heroes.

F.The Greeks regarded the Illiad and Odyssey as history. Homer gave the Greeks an ideal past full of heroes. Generations of Greek males used these poems as models of heroism and honor.

II. The Polis: Center of Greek Life A.By 750 B.C., the polis, or city-state, had become the central focus of Greek life. People met for political, religious, social, and economic activities.

B.The main gathering place was usually on a hill, topped with a fortified area called the acropolis. This was a refuge and sometimes a place for religious or other publics buildings.

C.City-states varied in size. Most were between a few hundred and several thousand people. Athens was one of the largest, with a population of more than 300,000 by 400 B.C.

D.The polis was a community of people who shared a common identity and common goals. There were three classes: citizens with political rights (adult males) Citizens without political rights (women and children) Non-citizens (slaves and foreigners)

E.Greek states developed different forms of government. Some city-states became democracies, ruled by many. Others became oligarchies, ruled by few. Two of the most powerful city-states, Athens and Sparta, illustrate the differences.

III. Sparta A.Between 800 and 600 B.C., the lives of the Spartans were rigidly controlled and disciplined. Boys learned military discipline (7), entered the military at age 20, and lived in the barracks until they were 30.

B.At 30, Spartan males were allowed to vote in the assembly and live at home, but remained in the army until the age of 60. Spartan women lived at home while their husbands lived in the barracks.

C.Spartan women had more power than women in other Greek city-states. Spartan women supported Spartan values, expecting their husbands and sons to be brave in war.

D.A council of elders, made up of two kings and 28 citizens senior males, decided on issues the assembly of male citizens would vote on. The assembly did not debate, but only voted.

E.Sparta closed itself off from the outside world. Foreigners and travel were discouraged. Spartans frowned upon new ideas and the arts. Only the art of war mattered.

IV. Athens A.A king ruled early Athens. By the seventh century B.C. it was ruled by an oligarchy of aristocrats who owned the best land and controlled politics.

B.Near the end of the seventh century, economic problems led to political turmoil. Many Athenian farmers were sold into slavery for nonpayment of their debts to aristocrats. Protest resulted to cancel the debts and give land to the poor.

C.The aristocrats gave power to Solon in 594 B.C., Solon (So Lon) favored reform. He canceled the debts but did not give land to the poor. This left the aristocrats in power and the poor unable to obtain land.

D.In 508 B.C., Cleisthenes (cli sten knees), another reformer, gained the upper hand. He gave the Athenian assembly the authority to pass laws after debate. Cleisthenes reforms laid the foundation for Athenian democracy.

V. Classical Greece A.Classical Greece is the name given to the period from B.C. During this time, the Greeks fought two wars. The first war was against the Persians, who were defeated by the unified Greeks.

B.Pericles created a direct democracy. Every male citizen could participate in the general assembly and vote on major issues. This period was called the Age of Pericles.

C.The Greek world was divided between the Athenian Empire and Sparta. Athens and Sparta had built very different societies and they distrusted each other. After a series of disputes, the second war of the Classical Greece period, the Great Peloponnesian War broke out in 431 B.C.

D.The Great Peloponnesian War weakened the Greek city-states and ruined any hope of unity among them. For the next 70 years, Sparta and Athens struggled for domination. These internal struggles caused the Greeks to ignore the growing power of Macedonia.

VI. The Culture of Classical Greece A.Classical Greek art was concerned with expressing eternal ideals. Art was meant to civilize emotions.

B.The most important architectural form was the temple. The greatest example is the Parthenon, dedicated the goddess Athena. The classical style of Greek sculpture depicted nudes.

C.Greek dramas were presented as part of religious festivals. The original Greek dramas were tragedies, used to examine the theme of good vs. evil.

D.Philosophy “ love of wisdom ” refers to an organized system of rational thought. Early Greek philosophers were concerned with the nature of the universe.

E.Socrates developed the Socratic method. This was a question-and-answer format to lead pupils to understand things for themselves. Plato was one of Socrates ’ students and considered the greatest Western philosopher.

F.Plato explained his views of government in The Republic. Plato established a school in Athens called the Academy. His most important pupil was Aristotle, who studied at the Academy for 20 years.