Daily Life in Ancient Greece
Jake
How did Pericles strengthen Greek Democracy?
During the Golden Age of Athens (479 B.C. - 431 B.C.), a man named Pericles came to power. He was the most powerful man in the city. He helped lead the Athenian people through peace and war. Pericles became the leader of a democratic group in around 460 B.C. He introduced new reforms, the most important being that the city now had to pay a salary to its officials. This meant that poor people could hold government offices! The greatest accomplishment of Pericles was the construction of the Parthenon. It was part of a reconstruction project to help rebuild the Acropolis at Athens. The Parthenon was built as a place to honor the goddess Athena, the protector of Athens.
Pericles
Pericles was an Athenian leader who led his people through peace, war, and much democratic growth.
Greek Warriors
Pericles was also a skilled general. He helped lead Greek Spartans to victory after victory.
The Parthenon
The construction of the Parthenon lasted from 447 B.C. to 432 B.C. It was a place to go and honor the goddess Athena, the protector of Athens.
Who Were the Twelve Olympians?
Ancient Greeks were polytheistic, meaning they believed in multiple gods and goddesses. The Twelve Olympians were a main group of gods and goddesses that Greeks worshiped. These immortal beings lived on the top of Mount Olympus. Here are their names and titles:
1. Zeus (Jupiter/Jove): King of the Gods
2. Hera (Juno): Queen of the Gods
3. Poseidon (Neptune): The Sea
4. Hades (Pluto):The Underworld
5. Hestia (Vesta): Hearth/Home Fireplace
6 Athena (Minerva): Wisdom/War
7. Artemis (Diana):Moon/Hunt
8. Apollo (Apollo): Light/Music
9. Aphrodite (Venus): Love/Beauty
10. Hephaestus (Vulcan): Fire/Forge Hammer
11. Ares (Mars): War
12. Hermes (Mercury):Messenger/Divine Herald
About ME!
HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY! It's Jake! This is my first article on Smore, so I hope you like it because I put a whole bunch of time and effort into it, and if you don't then you're mean and rude....... I'M KIDDING! LOL!
Email: 04898@students.district87.org
Website: dontstalkmeplease.weebly.com
Location: Bloomington, IL, United States
Phone: (309) 000-0000
Interesting Factoid!
Did you know that our modern Olympic Games started in Ancient Greece? IT'S TRUE! Festivals were held every four years in Greek city-states to honor their gods. It consisted of food, games, and many events. The first known Olympics took place in 776 B.C.
The Search for Knowledge
Greek Science and Philosophy
There were people in Greek society called Philosophers, who used reason to understand the world. There was this one philosopher, Socrates, who's teachings got him big-time busted.
Socrates
Socrates was a Greek philosopher. He spoke out and tried to persuade people to understand the true qualties of justice, wisdom, and courage. Unfortunately for him, Johnny Law caught up with Socrates. He died of a forced suicide in prison.
Plato and Aristotle
Socrates had a student named Plato, to whom he passed his teachings down to. Plato had this student named Aristotle, whom he taught. It's like this little line of philosophic education!
Greeks believed that their gods were responsible for everything, but a few people disagreed. They wanted to get proof that gods were not responsible. That took 150 years. That's one heck of a long time to gather evidence JUST to prove to people that nature IS real, and that things DO naturally occur.
Visual and Dramatic Arts
Greek Art and Architecture
As you can well see, the Ancient Greeks were skilled in just about everything, even art and architecture. Just look at the detail on these figures: A-MAZING!
Visual Arts
These were basically just regular performances or paintings, like Mona Lisa, or Grease.
Dramatic Arts
Dramatic Arts were, as you can assume, dramas. It usually ended in a tragedy, or something that ends really bad or really sad.