1. What do you know about Greek Mythology
What do you know about Greek Mythology? Tell me anything that comes to mind.

2. Early Greeks and the Rise of City-States

3. Geography Uneven coasts Mountain ranges kept villages separated
Most Greeks became fishers, sailors, and traders
Mountain ranges kept villages separated
Rivers were short so did not aid trade between villages
City-States arose

4. City-States:
or Polis: A fort, its city, the lands, and farms around it
3 Basic Ideas-
Geographical territory
Community it represented
Political and economic independence
Greece city-states similar by:
Small area
Population less then 10,000
Acropolis: a hill where the fort is built
Agora: a marketplace
Sense of patriotism for their own city-state

5. Early Greek Peoples The Minoans: The Mycenaeans:
Nobles had running water
Colorful frescoes (paintings on wet plaster walls)
Traded for food
Destroyed by Volcano erupting and causing tidal waves
The Mycenaeans:
People split into clans/tribes and headed by a warrior
By 1200 BC, all cities were destroyed by earthquakes and war

7. Greek Government and Society

8. Greek Government
City-States with Warrior as leader who relied on wealthy to support them
Wealthy became known as nobles
Nobles overthrew leaders of City-States and took power
Armies hired by non noble people started fighting city-states
Tyrants took power to relieve the people of the nobles rule
The people overthrew tyrants and established Democracy

9. Iliad and Odyssey Epic: long historical poem
Homer wrote two great epics:
Iliad:
Legend of the Trojan War
Helen and Paris, Wood Horse
Odyssey:
What happened after the Trojan War when King Odysseus heads home from Troy

10. Olympic Games Every four years to honor Zeus (the head god)
Had athletic contests like:
Boxing, foot races, javelin and discus throwing, wrestling
Winners received wreaths of wild olive branches
There were NO 2nd and 3rd places

11. Greek Religious Beliefs
Greek religion is different than others at the time because:
DID NOT emphasize highs standards of morality
DID NOT believe in the afterlife, just a gloomy underworld
3 basic things:
Religion had to explain nature
Religion had to explain why people had emotions
Religion brought certain benefits

12. Mythology
To explain the world around them, the Greeks created Myths: traditional stories about gods and heroes
All the gods live on Mount Olympus in northern Greece