Chapter Summary

In the Greek peninsula and in the Aegean islands, the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations preceded the formation of the Greek city-states, the most of which were Sparta and Athens. In the poleis, participatory forms of government evolved, as did traditions of philosophy, literature and drama, art and architecture, and medicine. The heroic individualism and competitive spirit of the Greeks led them to bravely confront the encroaching Persian empire. However, those same traits led to the demise of the city-states, as Greeks failed to cooperate amongst themselves.

Chapter Outline

1. The Rise and Fall of Ancient Heroes, 2000 - 800 B.C.
   The early Greeks built a civilization in the Aegean peninsula in which the tensions between individual pride and heroism would become a dominant theme, as would an emphasis on the role of humans and their abilities to understand and master their world.
   1. The Greek Peninsula
   2. The Minoans, 2000 - 1450 B.C.
      
      1. Economic power
      2. Religious ritual
      3. Minoan destruction
   3. Mycenaean Civilization: The First Greeks, 2000 - 1100 B.C.
      
      1. Trade
      2. Violence and disruption
   4. From "Dark Ages" to Colonies
      
      1. Founding colonies
2. Emerging from the Dark: Heroic Beliefs and Values
   The Greeks adopted the Phoenician alphabet, which allowed them to record and transmit their powerful values and ideas to others.
   1. Heroic Values Preserved
      
      1. Homer
      2. Hesiod
   2. The Family of the Gods
      
      1. Oracles
      2. Worship of Dionysus
      3. Impact of religious ideas
   3. Studying the Material World
      
      1. Thales and Democritus
      2. Pythagoras
      3. Practical applications
      4. Fears of "impiety"
3. Life in the Greek Polis: 700 - 489 B.C.
   In the great city-states Greeks developed an economy based on olives and experimented with different political forms which varied in the degree of democratic participation allowed to citizens.
                 1. Hoplite Armies
   
   1. The Invention of Politics
      
      1. Tyrants
      2. City-states
   2. The Heart of the Polis
      
      1. Men's and women's roles
      2. Slave labor
   3. Fears and Attachments in Greek Emotional Life
      
      1. Bisexual relations
      2. Sappho of Lesbos
      3. Courtesans
   4. Athens: City of Democracy
      
      1. Oligarchy
      2. Solon's reforms
      3. Increased democracy
      4. Tyranny
      5. Assessing democracy
      6. Ostracism
   5. Sparta: Model of a Military State
      
      1. Spartan life
   6. The Love of the Contest: Olympic Games
      1. Olympic Games
      2. Women at Olympics
4. Imperial Athens, 489 - 431 B.C.
   After their victory against the Persians, the Athenians built an empire, creating tensions between themselves and the citizens of other city-states.
   1. The Persian Wars, 490 - 479 B.C.
      
      1. Battle of Marathon
      2. A second invasion
      3. Thermopylae
      4. Greek naval victory
   2. Herodotus: the Father of History
   3. Athens Builds an Empire, 477 - 431 B.C.
      
      1. Delian League
      2. Pericles
      3. Pericles' democracy
   4. Artistic Athens
   5. Greek Theater: Exploring Complex Moral Problems
      
      1. Aeschylus and Sophocles
5. Destruction, Disillusion, and a Search for Meaning
   The end of Athenian prosperity, which came with the wars between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies, raised new questions among Greek philosophers, which were accompanied by innovations in culture and science.
                 1. Thucydides
   
   1. The Peloponnesian War, 431 - 404 B.C.
      
      1. Melos destroyed
      2. Athens loses
   2. Philosophical Musings: Athens Contemplates Defeat
      
      1. Socrates
      2. Plato
      3. Aristotle
   3. Tragedy and Comedy: Innovations in Greek Theater
      
      1. Euripides
      2. Aristophanes
   4. Hippocrates and Medicine
   5. The Aftermath of War, 404 - 338 B.C.
      
      1. Power struggles

The Chapter in Perspective

      The people of the small, independent city-states of the Greek peninsula changed the course of Western civilization. The poleis would serve as a model for democratic forms of government for later civilizations. The achievements of the Greeks in art, theater, and architecture have had an enduring impact on the aesthetics of Western civilization as well. Furthermore, the Greeks' rational thinking and questioning have shaped how Westerners understand life, history, philosophy, and medicine even today. Unfortunately, the individualism and pride of the Greeks, which stimulated some of these achievements, also led to their downfall. The eastern Mediterranean would soon be controlled by people more concerned with unity than with individual goals. However, these people would preserve and spread some of the greatest Greek achievements as far east as India.

1. Do you think Greek traditions of participatory government will survive in large multi-ethnic empires?*
2. What are some of the lasting achievements and influences of Greek society? How do we see their legacy reflected in contemporary Western society?