Year 9
Unit 2 - Classical Greece
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The rediscovery of writing
During the Dark Ages, the Greeks had seemingly forgotten the art of writing. But at that time, along the coast of North Africa, there lived a great trading people known as the Phoenicians. The Phoenicians had developed a written language of their own. It must have been a difficult language to pronounce, because its alphabet consisted entirely of consonants. During the Archaic Period, the Greeks traded more and more frequently with the Phoenicians. Eventually they began to adapt and use the Phoenician alphabet as their own. They added extra signs for vowels, which made the language much easier to write and to pronounce. This is how the Greek alphabet was first developed. The birth of the Greek alphabet was very important. It was used to produce great Classical Greek poetry, drama and other literature. It also became the basis of the Latin alphabet, which formed the written language of ancient Rome. The Latin language, in turn, became the basis of most modern European languages. The spread of Greek colonies During the Archaic Period, many Greeks sailed away from Greece to set up new city states called "colonies" in foreign lands. There were several reasons for these emigrations from Greece: |
Throughout the Archaic Period, hundreds of more Greek colonies were set up along the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. They were usually set up in places where there were good harbours for trading, good land for farming and where there was not too much opposition from local people. The map opposite shows the areas of the Mediterranean basin colonised by the Greeks by about 550 B.C. Most Greek colonies were copies of Greek city states. For many centuries, many of them remained centres of Greek learning and civilisation. |
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Boxing: Boxing tended to be more bloody than boxing of today. In the first place, almost any blow of the hand to any part of the body was allowed. Secondly, a contest would go on until one of the boxers surrendered or was knocked completely unconscious. This could take several hours.
Wrestling: There were three different wrestling events. There was upright wrestling, in which the winner had to throw his opponent three times. There was ground wrestling, which went on until one man gave in. But by far the most dangerous (and most popular) type of wrestling was called pankration. In this event every tactic was allowed except for biting and eye-gouging. Competitors were sometimes killed during pankration events. (right) The pentathlon: One of the most difficult events of the Olympics was the pentathlon, which was designed to find the best all-round athlete. It consisted of five different events: running, jumping, javelin throwing, discus throwing and wrestling. Chariot racing: Chariot races were run over twelve laps round two posts in the ground. There were separate races for chariots pulled by two horses and for chariots pulled by four horses. Up to forty chariots could take part in a race and there were often nasty accidents, especially in the larger races. One such accident is described here by the poet Homer: |
The competitor Eumelos was thrown from his chariot close to the wheel. The skin was ripped from his mouth and nose and elbow and his forehead was smashed open. His mighty voice was silenced. What a race!
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Activity Write the questions and answers for a ‘Fling the Teacher’ style quiz entitled ‘The Society and Government of Ancient Athens’. The correct answers are: Acropolis, Polis, Parthenon, Citizens, Metics, Slaves, Monarchy, Aristocracy, Tyranny and Democracy. Remember for each correct answer you must include 3 feasible incorrect answers. Click here to see the games created by Moser Year 9 in 2019. Remember to enable Flash. |
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What this excellent introductory film about Athenian democracy and try to answers the questions below as you go. Good luck. |
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To conclude, watch this rather more complex explanation of Athenian democracy. As a result of our recent lessons hopefully some or even most of what Dr Bettany Hughes says will make sense! |
Activities
1. Explain the meaning of the following words in the context of classical Athens: democracy, assembly, quorum, ostracise, council, lot. These words are all in bold in the text and many were also explained in the films. 2. After first discussing in groups, fill in a table of similarities and differences between ancient Greek and modern democracy. |
Lesson 5 - Sparta
In the last lesson you learned about Athens, which was a very famous city state of Ancient Greece. While Athens was known for its poets and learned people and fine buildings, Sparta was famous for something else. It was a land of warriors. Everything in Sparta was geared to producing a huge army of tough, disciplined soldiers. The Spartans succeeded in building the best army in ancient Greece. They also won most of the prizes at the Olympic Games, but they did not create much art or literature or many fine buildings. Social classes There were three separate social classes in Sparta: Only Spartan men were allowed to be citizens of Sparta and only they could take part in the Government of the state. All citizens had to serve in the Spartan army. |
The second class were the free men. They often came from outside Sparta and so were called perioikoi 'neighbours'. They were mainly craftsmen, farmers or traders. They were allowed to serve in the army. But they could take no part in the running of Sparta.
The helots were descended from the people who had originally lived in Sparta, but who had been conquered by the Spartans. They were treated as slaves. They farmed the land for the Spartan masters, who usually treated them cruelly. Most people living in Sparta were helots. |
Life in Sparta
There was very little luxury in ancient Sparta. The people lived in hard, uncomfortable conditions because they believed that this would help to keep them strong and able to defend themselves from possible attack. Every Spartan man had to be a soldier. Even kings were not allowed to possess wealth or luxuries; as such things might make them weak or selfish. Children (even when they obeyed orders) were left hungry and flogged. This was to toughen them up into hard, fearful warriors. Babies belonged not so much to their parents as to the State. When a child was born, state officers would come to examine it. If the child was healthy and perfectly formed it "passed" the examination and was allowed to live. If not, the baby would be taken outside and left to die. |
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The Boy and the Fox (based on an ancient Spartan story)
The Spartan boy had been seeking some excitement when, near the house of local helot, he saw a beautiful young fox - no doubt the pet of some helot child. Remembering how in school he was encouraged to steal from helots, he thought only for a moment before scrambling over the fence. Creeping stealthily upon the animal, he pounced, grabbed the fox and was gone before anyone noticed. The fox's little heart beat with fear. But the boy's heart beat with delight. He could not wait to show his fox cub to his friends and to tell them of his successful adventure.
It was only when he neared his barracks that he heard some guards approach. Knowing that (while successful theft was praised) he must not be actually caught stealing, the boy stuffed the fox inside his tunic. The guards, seeing that the boy seemed to be acting suspiciously, began to question him. The boy lied coolly about his activities and (since boys had to be polite to older Spartan citizens) even held polite conversation with the guards long after they had stopped questioning him.
When, at last, the guards bade him good evening; the boy made his way to his barracks, staggered through the door and fell dead on the floor. His friends gathered around and soon discovered the cause of his death. While the boy was being questioned by the guards, the terrified fox had eaten right into his stomach and intestines. The boy, though in agony, had never cried out.
The leaders in the barracks agreed that the boy had been an ideal young Spartan.
Zeus (Jupiter) - King of the gods and ruler of Mount Olympus; god of the sky and thunder. Symbols include the thunderbolt, eagle, oak tree, sceptre and scales.
Hera (Juno) Queen of the gods and the goddess of marriage and family. Symbols include the peacock, pomegranate, crown, lion and cow. Wife and sister of Zeus. Poseidon (Neptune) Lord of the seas, earthquakes and horses. Symbols include the horse, bull, dolphin and trident. Brother of Zeus and Hades. Dionysus (Bacchus) - God of wine, celebrations and ecstasy. Patron god of the art of theatre. Symbols include the grapevine, ivy, cup, tiger, leopard, dolphin and goat. Apollo (Apollo) God of light, music, poetry, prophecy and archery. Symbols include the sun, lyre, bow and arrow, raven, dolphin, wolf, swan and mouse Artemis (Diana) Virgin goddess of the hunt, virginity, archery and all animals. Symbols include deer, hound, she-bear, snake, cypress tree and bow and arrow. Hermes (Mercury) Messenger of the Gods; god of commerce and thieves. Symbols include the caduceus (staff with two snakes), winged sandals, stork and tortoise Athena (Minerva) Virgin goddess of wisdom, handicrafts, defence and strategic warfare. Symbols include the owl and the olive tree. Ares (Mars) God of war, violence and bloodshed. Symbols include the boar, serpent, dog, vulture, spear and shield. Mars, gave us the word "martial." Aphrodite (Venus) Goddess of love, beauty, and desire. Symbols include the dove, bird, apple, bee, swan, myrtle and rose. Her name gave us the word "aphrodisiac." Hephaestus (Vulcan) Master blacksmith and craftsman of the gods; god of fire and the forge. Symbols include the fire, anvil, axe and quail. Demeter (Ceres) Goddess of fertility, agriculture, nature, and the seasons. Symbols include the poppy, wheat, torch, and pig. Latin name gave us the word cereal." |
The Greeks believed that there were several ways of finding out the future. Oracles were people who predicted the future by speaking directly to a deity (though the word "oracle" can also be used to describe the sacred place where the priestess spoke or the message which she gave). Perhaps the most famous oracle of all was the Pythia or the Oracle of Delphi, a woman through whom the god Apollo spoke. Even kings looked for advice from the Oracle of Delphi. Soothsayers were people with mysterious powers to predict the future. One such soothsayer was Cassandra of Troy. Apollo had placed a curse on Cassandra so that while she would always foretell the future correctly, nobody would ever believe her. Her most important prediction, she warned that the wooden horse of Troy was a trap and that it should not be brought into the city. Everybody laughed at her. You know the result!
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The ancient Greeks believed that after death, the soul of the dead person would begin the journey to the Underworld, the underground kingdom ruled over by Hades. Hermes would be sent to help out in this task. He would call the spirit to follow him. They would fly through caves deep underground and eventually they would come to the banks of a dark and frightening river. This was the Styx - the boundary between the living world and the Underworld. Hermes would now have to leave.
The soul, terrified at the side of the Styx, would soon sense something moving towards her/him across the water. It would be Charon, the ghostly ferryman who would carry the soul in his boat to the other side. But Charon had to be paid. For this purpose, the relatives of the newly dead would always place a coin under the tongue of the dead person. |
Activity
1. Make a copy of the picture of the Olympian gods. Read the descriptions and add the correct name to each image. Remember, four of the gods are not Olympian. 2. Explain why people made sacrifices to the gods. 3. What is the difference between oracles, soothsayers and omens? 4. Using the text and the film to help you, write a guide for someone in ancient Greece about what to expect after you died. Your guide should be between 250 and 300 words long and must be in your own words. Extension Want to know more about Greek and Roman gods? Watch the crash course episode opposite |
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Many consider the western literary tradition to have begun with the epic poems of Homer, The Iliad and The Odyssey. A Greek playwright named Aeschylus (c. 525-456 BC) changed Western literature forever when he introduced the ideas of dialogue and interacting characters to playwriting. In doing so, he essentially invented "drama": Other great Greek playwrights were Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.), Euripides. (c. 480-406 B.C.) and Aristophanes (c. 448-380 B.C.)
Greek tragedies and comedies were always performed in outdoor theatres. (See Epidauros theatre left) The orchestra (literally, ‘dancing space’) was normally circular and would be where the chorus would perform. In the centre of the orchestra there was often a thymele, or altar. The theatron (literally, "viewing-place") is where the spectators sat. The theatron was usually part of hillside overlooking the orchestra, and often wrapped around a large portion of the orchestra. |
Ancient Greece mathematics contributed many important developments to the field of mathematics, including the basic rules of geometry. The discoveries of several Greek mathematicians, including Pythagoras (570-490 BC see left), Euclid (c. 300 BC), and Archimedes (c. 287 c. 212 BC), are still used in mathematical teaching today. The ancient Greeks also made important discoveries in the medical field. Hippocrates (460- 370 BC) was a doctor considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine. He is referred to as the ‘father of medicine’ and all modern doctors swear the Hippocratic Oath which governs their behaviour as doctors. |