1. The Golden Age of Greece

2. Arts of the Golden Age
400s BC Greece entered a new era of cultural progress
Athens stood as the symbol of Greece’s Golden Age
Athens became the center of learning and artistic achievement

3. Architecture
Athenians showed pride by building temples, gymnasiums, and theaters
Acropolis – a high hill, was the center of Athens
At the top of the Acropolis stood the Parthenon
White marble temple built in honor of Athena

4. Then…

5. Now…

6. The Parthenon
Greek temples were used as shrines, not places of worship
Inside
38 foot tall statue of Athena, made of ivory and gold
Greeks’ greatest achievement

7. Do any modern buildings look like the Parthenon?

9. Painting Painting was an important art form to the Greeks
Most original pieces of art have been lost or badly damaged
Best preserved paintings are found on vases
Vase paintings showed scenes from everyday life

11. Sculpture Early Greek Sculptures
Figures were stiff and in unnatural poses
Men and women were portrayed standing with their arms straight down
400s BC sculptors began creating more lifelike figures
Many using mathematical proportions to make the statue look realistic

12. Myron
The Discus Thrower
Created around 460 BC

13. Phidias
Created the statues of Athena that decorated the Acropolis and the Parthenon
Greatest work
Statue of Zeus at the Temple of Olympia
40 feet tall
In ancient times considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World

15. Praxiteles Lived about 100 years after Phidias
Created more lifelike and natural statues, unlike Phidias
Above all things Praxiteles expressed the Greek admiration for the beauty of the human body

16. The Nature of Greek Art
Greek art reflects the Greek view of themselves and the world by:
Glorifying human beings
Pride in their city-state
Expressed beliefs in harmony, balance, order, and moderation
Combining beauty and usefulness

17. Philosophers of the Golden Age
“An unexamined life”
- Socrates

18. The Rise of Philosophy
Philosophy – the study of basic questions of reality and human existence
Used philosophy to better understand themselves and the world around them
Philosophers often disagree, but most believed:
that you could discover truths through reason

19. Socrates Taught that education was the key of personal growth
Taught by using the Socratic Method instead of memorization

20. Socratic Method
Taught by asking questions that forced his students to test their own values and ideas
One question would lead to another question
Got him into a lot of trouble

21. His Big Mouth… Socrates had powerful enemies
His questions often made officials look foolish
He openly criticized democracy- saying that unskilled people should not have power
Made fun of local teachers and their teaching styles

22. Trial and Death
Enemies falsely accused him of denying the existence of many Greek gods
Said that his teachings corrupted the minds of the youth
Brought to trial
Socrates did little to defend himself
He refused to deny his teachings
Found guilty and executed

24. Plato One of Socrates greatest students
After the death of Socrates, Plato founded the Academy
First institute of higher learning in the Western World

25. “Theory of Forms”
A theory that states the world as it seems is not the real world, but a shadow of the real world
Perfection can never be reached because your senses can be fooled
A square is a perfect shape, but it is almost impossible to make a perfect square

26. Politics Aristocracy – a government ruled by an upper class
In Plato’s aristocracy the government would not be run by the rich, but by the philosophers

27. Aristotle One of Plato’s students at the Academy
Founded his own school in 335 BC
Believed that every field of knowledge had to be studied logically
Collected facts and then organized them, by defining and classifying them
Important part of modern day science

28. Political Views
Believed that monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy were all good forms of government
But all could be corrupted easily
Wanted to combine the three and create a limited democracy

29. Pythagoras
Philosopher who believed that everything could be explained by math
Pythagorean theorem

30. Hippocrates Lived between 460 – 377 BC Founder of medical science
Taught that disease comes from natural causes and not from punishment from the gods
Believed that rest, fresh air, and a proper diet made the best cures

31. Hippocratic Oath
“I swear… that I will carry out, according to my ability and judgment, this oath and this indenture [contract]…I will use treatment to help the sick according to my ability and judgment, but never with a view to injury and wrongdoing.”

32. History First people to take writing history seriously
Herodotus is consider the Father of History
Made sure to point out if he saw something or was told about an event
Thucydides recorded a History of the Peloponnesian War

33. Greek Theater
Athenian writers produced many of the world’s greatest works of literature
First to write Dramas
Two or three actors spoke or sang the lines for an audience
Male actors played the women parts
A group of singers, called the chorus, described the scene

34. Tragedies- main character struggled against fate, or events
Often the tragic heroes were punished for displaying pride
Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides- most famous writers of tragedies

35. Comedies- Made fun of ideas and people
Usually included both tragic and humorous figures
Main characters in comedies solved their problems
Finest writer of Greek comedies was Aristophanes