-
Ancient Greece
I. A general
introduction of Ancient Greece
Today we
are going to visit the world of Ancient Greece.
Ancient Greece was really
the start ,
or origin of
European
civilization. It was the foundation of western
politics, law,
art
and
culture.
Ancient
Greece
and
Ancient
Rome
together
are
sometimes
called
the
world
or
civilization.
The
study
of
Ancient
Greece
and
Ancient
Rome
is
called
The
civilization
of
Ancient
Greece
was
at
its
height
about
400-500 years BC. At that time, it was
one of the most advanced places on Earth, in terms
of economics and culture.
However, it is not really correct to
say that Ancient Greece was one country , as we
think
of
a
country
today.
Ancient
Greece
was
actually
a
large
number
of
small
independent
cities.
This
was
thanks
to
the
geography
of
Greece
:
the
large
number
of
mountains, hills and
valleys divided the country up into small areas.
Each of these areas
had their own
government, and they have been called city states.
the most famous of these
is of course
Athens. The name Athens comes
from the Greek goddess Athena, who was
the
goddess
of
knowledge
and
wisdom.
However,
in
spite
of
this,
the
people
of
ancient
Greece
still saw themselves as Greek. They had the same
language, the same culture, and
the
same religion. In many respects, society in
ancient Greece was very different to society
today. In one example, men and women
were not equal and were treated differently. Men
could go to the theatre and talk about
politics and things like that, but women had to
stay at
home. women were not allowed to
take part in politics and public life. They just
had to stay
at home and do the domestic
work. Most families also had slaves. These slaves
were not
given the same rights as a
Greek citizen. They couldn't own their own houses
or land--they
just had to be servants
in somebody else's house. Slavery was very common,
and even a
poor
Greek
family
might
have
a
few
slaves.
It
was
not
just
the
Greeks
that
did
this.
However--slavery was
normal
in
ancient world---
it
happened in
Ancient Egypt,
Ancient
Greece,
and
Ancient
Rome.
In
spite
of
this,
there
are
also
many
positive
things
about
Ancient
Greece
---things
which
have
an
enormous
impact
on
history.
One
thing
Ancient
Greece is famous for was its
intellectual life. Ancient Greece philosophers
,like Aristotle,
Plato and Socrates
used reason an d logic to try and understand the
world. The Greeks are
also
famous
for
their
science
---particularly
in
mathematics
and
astronomy.
Their
understanding
in
these
areas
was
very
advanced
and
sophiscated
for
their
time.
Their
discoveries had a
large impact on modern philosophy and modern
science. Ancient Greek
culture
was
also
very
famous.
Perhaps
the
most
important
literature
that
came
out
of
ancient Greece are the
works of Homer. He wrote two epics, known as Iliad
and Odyssey.
They
are
generally
seen
as
the
first
great
works
in
the
history
of
western
literature.
The
Ancient
Greeks
also
invented
the
theatre
and
drama
as
we
know
it
today.
Religion
was
another important part of life here.
The Greeks were polytheists, that is , they
believed in
many different gods. A lot
of the stories and mythology of Ancient Greece are
to do with
these
different
gods.
Greek
architecture
is
also
famous
because
Greek
religion
was
very
important, the largest and most
beautiful buildings are religious buildings, such
as temples
to different gods. The Greek
style or classical style became the standard for
great buildings
in Europe and it still
is today. Many famous buildings in Europe and
America are built in
this style---
including the White House. Another legacy from
Ancient Greece was the sport.
The
Greeks invented the sports competitions to honor
their gods. The most famous of these
was held every four years in a place
called Olympia. It is from this we get the
Olympics.
From
politics
to
culture,
from
architecture
to
sport,
Ancient
Greece's
influence
on
later
European
civilization has been extremely important.
Outline:
Ancient
Greece was really the start or origin of western
civilization.
Geography:
mountainous
Politics: city-states/
poleis
slave-based
democracy politics
Philosophy:
philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle
Science:
mathematics, astronomy
A
polis or city state is state made up of a city and
its surrounding countryside and towns
Literature: epics ( Iliad and Odyssey),
poetry, and drama
Religion:
polytheists, mythology
Architecture:
standard style
Sport:
Olympics
II. Learning
objectives
?
To
get a brief view of the history and development of
Greek Civilization
?
To be familiar with Greek culture in
mythology, religion, philosophy, history,
literature and arts
?
To know some representative
philosophers and their contributions
III. Word study
Neolithic
['ni
?
'l
?
θ
?
k]
adj. [
古
]
新石器时代的；早先的
Cretan
[?krit?
n] n.
克里特岛人
adj.
克利特岛的
Mycenean
civilisation
迈锡尼文明
Thessaly[?θes?
li] n.
塞萨利（希腊地名
)
Trojan
[?trod
?
?
n]
adj.
特洛伊的；特洛伊人的
Iliad
英
[?ili?
d] n.
伊里亚特（相传为荷马所做的古希腊史诗）
Odyssey
英
美
['
ɑ
d
?
si] n.
奥德赛（古希腊史诗）
Ajax
['eid
?
?ks
]n.
【希腊神话】
（亦作
Ajax Telamon]
／
't
el
?
m
?
n
／，
Great Ajax(
大
)
埃阿斯
(
特洛
伊围攻战中的希腊英雄，
骁勇和膂力仅次
于阿喀琉斯。
在夺回阿喀琉斯尸体之战中立了功，
但当
阿喀琉斯的盔甲给予奥德修斯时，怒而自刺身亡
)
Achilles
[
?
'kili:z]
n.
【希腊神话】阿喀琉斯
(
或译阿基里斯；出生后被其母握脚踵倒提着在冥河水
中浸过，因此除未浸到水的脚踵
外，浑身刀枪不入；希腊勇士，曾参加围攻特洛伊城
)
IV
. Interpretation of
Cultural Terms
The Neolithic
新石器时代
: It is a period in the
development of human technology, beginning in
about
A. the Heroic Age
B. the Golden
Age
C. the
Cretan Civilization
9500 BC
in the Middle East that is traditionally
considered the last part of
the Stone
Age. The Neolithic is a measured progression of
behavioral and cultural characteristics and
changes, including the use of wild and
domestic crops and the use of domesticated
animals.
Minos
米诺斯
:
In
Greek
mythology,
Minos
was
a
king
of
Crete,
son
of
Zeus
and
Europa.
After
his
death, Minos became a
judge of the dead in Hades. The Minoan
Civilization of pre-Hellene Crete has
been named after him by the
archaeologist Arthur Evans.
V
. Comprehension Exercises
：
multiple choice.
(1) ____ is the major foundation in the
Western culture and makes a powerful impact on the
development of human civilization.
A. Ancient European culture
B.
Ancient Greek culture
C. Ancient Chinese culture
D. Ancient
Egyptian culture
(2) Greek culture can
date back to____.
A. the Neolithic Age
B. the Bronze Age
C. the Stone
and Bronze Age
D. the Old
Stone Age
(3) Mycenaean
culture was influenced the most by Cretan culture
on ____.
A. farming
B.
handicraft and trade
C. religion
D. philosophy
(4) The Trojan
War broke out at the end of ____.
D.
the Mycenaean Civilization
(5) The
first Olympiad began in the ____ period of the
Golden Age.
A. archaic
B. central
C. dependent
D.
dark
VI. Think and Discuss
Give a brief introduction to the Trojan
War and check references to know more about the
war.
The Trojan War broke
out at the end of the Mycenaean Civilization. All
the city-states in
Mycenae sent troops
to help form a coalition army for the battles. Not
long after the war,
the
Dorians
from
the
northwest
of
Greece
invaded
and
destroyed
Mycenae
in
about
the12th
–
11th
centuries BC.
Think and Discuss
(1) Greek Mythology and Religion
Greek mythology is based on a religion
which took shape during the Homeric Age
and
was
developed
from
animism
and
fetishism
into
polytheism.
The
religious
tales
became fully developed myths in the
Homeric epic and thus contributed greatly to the
later
development of all Greek arts.
In Greek myth, all the gods live on
Mount Olympus. There?s a list of a group of 12
gods (The Olympians) who ruled after
the overthrow of the Titans.
Main Ideas
Main Ideas
VI. Text Study
Main Ideas
God &
Goddess
Character
Zeus
Poseidon
Hades
Hestia
Hera
Ares
Athena
Apollo
the
heavenly
king
of
the
gods
and
ruler
of
mankind
the moody
god of the seas
the gloomy
god of the underworld
the
calm goddess of the hearth
the mature goddess of the
family
the fierce god of the
war
the sophisticated
goddess of wisdom and arts
the youthful god of the sun and the
music
Aphrodite
Hermes
Artemis
Hephaestus
the sensual goddess of love and
beauty
the cunning god of
the trade
the wild goddess
of the hunt
the ill-favored
god of metallurgy
(2) Greek Philosophy
Greek
philosophy
emerged
from
the
bondage
of
religion
and
went
through
a
process
of
fruitful
theoretical
research
combined
with
practical
experience
before
it
achieved its high point
in the history of human intellectual development.
It has influenced
much of Western
thought
with
a wide variety
of subjects,
including political
philosophy,
ethics,
metaphysics, ontology, logic, biology, rhetoric
and aesthetics.
Main Ideas
Text Study
Main Ideas
Early Greek Philosophers and Their
Noble Ideas
School
Name
Main
Idea
Thales
The world originated in
water and predicted a
total eclipse of
the sun.
The
origin
of
everything
in
the
world
is
unlimited
and
all
things
split
into
two
opposites.
Fire
is
the
fundamental
substance
in
the
universe,
and
the
universe
is
in
a
state
of
ongoing
change, struggle or flux.
Materialism
Anaximander
Heraclitus
Materialism
Democritus
Material
world
is
composed
of
tiny,
inseparable particles called
atoms.
Pythagoras
Idealism
Protagoras
Everything is numbers. And it is
possible to
acquire mystical
knowledge.
Man is the
measure of all things.
The Most
Influential Philosophers in Greece
Name
Life &
Notable
Main
Interests
Achievements
Ideas
Works
Socrates
a
classical
Greek
epistemology,
(470 BC
Athenian
ethics
–
399 BC)
philosopher,
one
of
the
founders
of
Western
philosophy
Socratic
method,
Socratic
irony
Socratic
dialogues
written
by
his
students
Plato
and
Xenophon
Plato
a
classical
Greek
rhetoric,
art,
Platonic
(427
BC
–
philosopher,
literature,
realism
347
BC)
mathematician,
epistemology,
student
of
justice,
virtue,
Socrates,
founder
politics,
of the Academy in
education,
Athens, and one of
family,
the
founders
of
militarism
Western
philosophy
and
science
writer
of
philosophi-cal
dialogues,
Apology
,
Protagoras
,
Gorgias
,
Phaedo
,
Symposium
,
Padres
,
The
Republic
,
The
Law
Aristotle
a
Greek
physics,
golden
(384
BC
–
philosopher,
a
metaphysics,
mean,
322 BC)
student
of
poetry, theatre,
reason,
Plato,
one
of
music,
logic,
the
most
rhetoric,
syllogism,
important
politics,
passion
founding
government,
figures
in
ethics,
Western
biology,
philosophy
zoology
The
Categories
,
The
Peri
Hermeneias
,
The
Prior
Analytics
,
The
Posterior
Analytics
,
Topics
and
the
Sophistical
Refutations
,
Physics
,
The
Politics
,
On
the
Parts
of
Animals
,
Zoology
and
History
of
Animals
Text
Study _III_1.3.1
Main Ideas
Text Study