Greeks Flashcards
Polis
An ancient Greek city-state encompassing both an urban area and its surrounding countryside; a small but autonomous political unit where all major political and social activities were carried out centrally
Hoplites
heavily armed infantry soldiers in ancient Greece who entered battle in a phalanx formation
Phalanx
a rectangular formation of tightly massed infantry soldiers
Tyrants
in an ancient Greek polis (or an Italian city-state during the Renaissance), a ruler who came to power in an unconstitutional way and ruled without being subject to the law
Sophists
wandering scholars and professional teachers in ancient Greece who stressed the importance of rhetoric and tended toward skepticism and relativism
The Classical Orders
Image result for The Classical orders
The Architectural Orders are the ancient styles of classical architecture, each distinguished by its proportions and characteristic profiles and details, and most readily recognizable by the type of column employed. Three ancient orders of architecture—the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian.
Doric: plain capitals and no base
Ionic: and elaborate base and spiral-shaped capitals
Corinthian: leaf-shaped capitals
Socratic Method
a form of teaching that uses a question-and-answer format to enable students to reach conclusions by using their own reasoning
Hellenistic
literally, “imitation the Greeks”: the ear after the death of Alexander the Great when Greek culture spread into the Near East and blended with the culture of that region
Gymnasium
in Classical Greece, a place for athletics: in the Hellenistic Age, a secondary school with a curriculum centered on music, physical exercise, and literature
Epicureanism
a philosophy founded by Epicurus in the fourth century B.C.E that taught that happiness (freedom from emotional turmoil) could be achieved through the pursuit of pleasure (intellectual rather than sensual pleasure)
Stoicism
a philosophy founded by Zeno in the fourth century B.C.E that taught that happiness could be obtained by accepting one’s lot and living in harmony with the will of Gods, thereby achieving inner peace
Mystery Religions
religions that involve initiation into secret rites that promise intense emotional involvement with spiritual forces and a greater chance of individual immortality
Syncretism
the combining of different forms of belief or practice, as, for example, when two gods are regarded as different forms of the same underlying divine force are fused together
What did Ancient Greece’s geography lack?
Wide open plains near a river suitable for large scale agriculture
What were the Ancient Greeks competitive against each other ?
Their geography from the earliest days. They were really close to each other
Who were the first people to be considered Greeks?
The warrior Mycenaens’s who controlled the Greek mainland from 1400-1200 B.C.E
What happened during the Greek Dark Age?
farming decline and new peoples, including the future Spartans, came to Ancient Greece.
What gave the Greek aristocratic families a guide for values on how to behave on the field of battle
Homer’s Iliad
What period of Greek history saw the rise of the Greek polis?
750-500 B.C.E
What did the fiercely competitive Greek polis’s lead to?
destructive wars that would end classical Greece
What was the most important value in a Greek polis?
the cooperation between its citizens for the common welfare of the state
Why did the Spartans make the army the center of their society
They had a massive slave population
Who were the most fit women in Greece
Spartan women
What led to the rise of tyrannical rule in which the rulers sought aid form the masses to control the polis?
The gap between the rich and the poor
What does Arete mean?
One is always striving for excellence in all aspect of life
How did Cleisthenes reforms effect Athens
It resulted in the government becoming a democracy
What was prevalent throughout Greek culture in the Archaic Age?
Lyric poetry
What led to the Persian Wars
The revolt of the Ionian Greek polis against Persia
In what battle did the Athenian hoplites defeated the Persians
The Battle of Marathon
When did the Spartan King Leonidas earn his legendary status
The Battle of Thermopylae
What was essentially the Athenian maritime empire?
The Delian League
Who transformed Athenian democracy so much that it became their identity for everything that Athenian citizens valued or stood for?
Pericles
Who destroyed the Athenian maritime empire?
The Peloponnesian
What led to the Great Peloponnesian War?
Sparta’s mistrust of the rising power of Athens
How did Thucydides write his historical account of the Great Peloponnesain War?
He used analysis without divine explanation
The Greek dramatist Euripides was know for what?
His realistic portrayal of realistic characters in real life situations
What did Greek comedy reflect?
the current political atmosphere of the time
What is one of the finest exceptional work of Greek temple architecture?
The Greek Parthenon
Originally what did Greek philosophy deal with?
the physical world
According to Plato, what mantra did Socrates live by?
“The unexamined life is not worth living”
What did Plato believe human society needed?
A king, educated in a philosophical manner
Who believed that a constitution was needed in governing human society?
Aristotle
What served an important social function in the Greek religion?
Greek myths
In ancient Greek women led what kind of lives?
secluded lives, were denied an education, and were under close male supervision
Who took the phalanx military formation and improved upon it?
Philp II of Macedonia
What battle in 338 B.C.E ended the independence of the Greek polis?
The Battle of Caeronea
What did Alexander the Great excel at?
using his cavalry on the battle field
How did Alexander win the Battle of Gaugemela?
By breaking through the center of the Persian line with his cavalry followed by the infantry
As Alexanders campaign continued what happened to his men?
They grew wary of being so far from their Greek homelands
What did Alexander believe he was?
Divine and sought to equal in feats of the mythical hero Ahilles
When did the Hellenisitc era occur?
When Greek culture spread into and interacted with the cultures of the Ancient Near East
How were the kingdoms in the Hellenistic World ruled?
By monarchies ruled by Greek descendants of Alexander’s generals
What became the largest city in the Hellenistic World?
Alexandria in Egypt
During the Hellenistic era, where did Greek industry and manufacturing go to?
The Ancient Near East
What women received more rights in the Hellenistic World?
Women of the upper class
What did the Hellenistic gymnasium embody?
The classical Greek ideas about education
in Alexandria what did physicians do?
Laid out the foundation of medicine through the use of dissection and vivisection
In Alexandria, Egypt what did the library supposedly have?
A hand written copy of every book ever written at the time
What was different about the Hellenistic sculpture compared to the Greek sculptures?
They were more emotional and realistic looking
What is Hippocrates considered to be?
The father of medicine. He separated if from philosophy.
What Alexandrian scholar systematized study of geometry?
Eulid
What did the Archimedes of Syracuse do?
designed military devices to thwart siege attackers, created the science of hydrostatics, established the mathematical value of constant pi, and worked on the geometry of sphere and cylinders
Hellenistic philosophy, dominated by Stoicism and Epicureanism, dealt with what?
human happiness more than the life of the polis
What philosophies are universal and can be used in our world today?
Stoicism and Epicureanism
During the Hellenistic period, what did Greek religion adapt to?
the incorporation of the Easter religious mystery cults
What did the mystery and religious cult of Hellenistic World help pave?
the way for the success of Christianity
During the Hellenistic period where did Jewish settlements began to spread to?
Egypt, Asia Minor, and Syria
What flourished well into the rise of Ancient Rome?
Hellenistic civilization
What were the four Hellenistic Kingdoms?
- Macedonia
- Syria
- Pergamum
- Egypt
