Homer’s Iliad

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Chapters (https: //colorstate.grlcontent.com/westerncivpremodern/page/chapters) Chapter 3: Archaic and Classical Greece

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THIS. IS. SPARTA! (https: //www.youtube.com/watch? v=QkWS9PiXekE)

Archaic and Classical Greece The Ancient Greek world has captured the attention of Western Civilization through pop culture and film

for over one hundred years. These movies portray aspects of Greek society including war and politics as

well as life and love. Indeed, Archaic and Classical Greece are the cornerstones of Western Civilization in

more ways than simply film. Democracy, philosophy, rational scientific thinking, and theater are all

fundamental legacies of the modern western and they have their foundation in archaic and classical

Greece culture. Even western history itself traces its roots to the Greek historian, Herodotus of the fifth

century BC. Other, perhaps lesser known, aspects of Greek culture have been adopted and adapted by

Western civilization and it is the aim of this chapter to highlight some of these areas, as well give in

introduction to Greek politics, society, and culture.

 

In particular, this chapter will examine the Bronze Age cultures of Ancient Greece and their collapse into a

period of Dark Ages. From there, the Archaic and Classical periods of Greek history, society, literature, and

culture will be examined. Through the lens of political, religious, and social trends, a better understanding

of Greek history will be revealed.

Chapter 3

 

 

Bronze Age Greece—The Minoans

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Linear B tablet of Pylos (https: //en.wikipedia.o

Greek history begins around 2,000 BC when Indo-Europeans begin to settle around the Aegean Sea.

 

Aegean Sea.

 

One of the earliest Indo-European cultures in the Aegean is that of the Minoans on the island of Crete.  There, the Minoan civilization used

metals, particularly bronze, for tools and weapons—hence the Bronze Age.  This culture was discovered at the turn of the twentieth-

century by Sir Arthur Evans, an English archaeologist who named the civilization after King Minos, a legendary king of Crete story

(http://www.mythweb.com/encyc/entries/minos.html). The excavations revealed an enormous palace complex at Knossos and the

remains testify to a rich and �ourishing culture that relied heavily on sea trade for its wealth, trading with Egypt and the Greek mainland.

 

The Minoans invented a writing system to keep records of their commercial activities. Two distinct scripts have been

found; the �rst, Linear A , was in use by 1800 BC and remains undeciphered. Scholars do, however, agree that it is not an

Indo-European script, and so the Minoan trader culture predates the arrival of the Greeks to the Aegean.  The second

script found on Crete and mainland Greece, Linear B, appeared about 300 years later, and is an early form of Greek.

 

The palace was the seat of the royal kings who ruled the society, built around a courtyard. Many private living areas have

been discovered which include family rooms, storage, and workshops. They are elaborately decorated with frescoes,

pottery, and artwork.

 

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Palace at Knossos (Left: image © Thinkstock.com) Reconstruction of Mycenaean Palace (Right: image © Shutterstock, Inc.)

 

The Minoan civilization suffered a sudden and devastating collapse around 1450 BC. The cause of this calamity is debated by scholars

today, but many agree that a giant tsunami triggered by the eruption of a volcano on Thera, modern-day Santorini, is responsible. Others

argue that the destruction was the result of an invading culture, the Mycenaeans. 

 

Caldera of Thera. image © Shutterstock, Inc.

 

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