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Homework Help: Social Studies: World History: Ancient Greek Civilization
by Court Canary
The ancient Greek civilization can be traced back nearly 4,000 years. The ancient Greek culture has impacted the cultures of today in the areas of art, philosophy, science, math, literature, and politics. The Greeks gave the world the ideas of trial by jury, democracy, theater, and the Olympics.
Ancient Greece was divided into many city-states. The largest city-state was Athens. All of the city-states were ruled by a type of government called a democracy, the type of government we have in the United States. In this type of government, the citizens vote on who they wan to be their leaders. The word democracy means rule by the people. In ancient Greece, only men could vote in the city-state they were born in. Women and slaves weren't allowed to vote.
There were many slaves, maybe even more slaves than free people, in Greece. A person could have been born or sold into slavery, taken prisoner as a slave if their city was attacked, or if their parents abandoned them as infants. If a slave was a household servant, they were often treated like family. Some slaves worked as mineworkers or ship's crewmembers, which included grueling work and dangerous conditions. A rich household usually had 10-20 slaves, all of which were supervised by the woman of the house. Some slaves could have worked in the police force or as clerks in a treasury office.
Greek society was highly impacted by gender. Women weren't treated as good as men were. For women, there was no alternative in life other than marriage. In most city-states, except for Sparta, girls stayed home until they were married. Women could only go to certain festivals, weddings, funerals, and visit their neighbors. A woman's job was to run the household and bear children. Girls didn't attend school, unlike boys who started school at the age of six or seven. Instead, girls learned to read and write at home.
There are many different ways to interpret the religious beliefs of ancient Greece. Nobody is sure about why the Greeks believed certain stories about their gods. These gods were ageless and did not die, and could do anything humans could not. Each god had their own job, and lived on top of Mount Olympus. There were lots of Greek gods. The Greeks thought that by believing in these gods that life would be good, since they controlled everything. The main god was Zeus. The Greeks had many ways of honoring their gods, including sacrificing animals at festivals. Many Greek temples are still standing today, including the Parthenon, which was built to honor the goddess Athena.
The ancient Olympic Games were another religious festival, in honor of Zeus. Men from all over Greece came to Olympia, where Mt. Olympus was located, to compete in the games. Some events included were running, jumping, throwing a javelin, and throwing a discus. The only game women were allowed to compete in was a foot race in honor of the goddess Hera, and even then it was only for unmarried women. Unmarried women were allowed to watch the men's games, but married women were not. The ancient Olympic games started around the year 776 BC, but a series of bronze tripods that may date back to the 9th century BC have been found at Olympia. Until about 724 BC, the only game was the stadion race, which was a foot race 600 feet long. The winning athletes would present gifts of food to the gods thanking them for their success. The Games took place every 4 years,. The tradition of the Olympics lasted from 776 BC to 393 AD, and did not return again for another 1503 years. A Frenchman named Baron Pierre de Coubertin presented the idea of a modern Olympics in 1894. The first modern Olympic Games was in Athens in 1896.
The Greeks also started the idea of the theater. Actors in the ancient Greek plays were chosen by the State, and they were always men, even in female roles. The theater itself had three main parts: the orchestra, the scene, and the main theater. The ancient Greek tragedy included the epic, the lyric, and dancing. Other forms of Greek theater were comedy and satyric drama.
A man named Thespis , in the sixth century BC, came up with idea of adding speaking actors to singing and dancing performances. Actors would perform at festivals honoring Dionysus, the god of theater. The main theater where these festivals were was the Theater of Dionysus in Athens, where actors would perform plays during the day. These festivals took up 10 days twice a year, with plays that took up almost the entire day. Instead of wearing make-up, the actors wore masks. There were usually only three actors, and then there was the chorus. The word drama comes from the Greek word meaning "to act." Ancient Greek theater was the start of all types of theater.
The ancient Greeks contributed a lot to present-day civilization. Along with democracy, the Olympics, and theater, they also gave us philosophy, astrology, biology, mathematics, physics, and much more. With all of these ideas, the ancient Greek civilization was far ahead of its time.
Homework Help: Social Studies: World History
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