Ancient Greece and Persia

Ancient Greece and Persia

1. Architecture

   • Pythagoras: Greek mathematician, philosopher, contributed to geometry
     • Pythagoras discovered the law a^2+b^2=c^2. This law is still taught in algebra today. It states that the hypotenuse of a right triangle squared is equal to the length of the two other sides squared and added together. This formula is important especially in geometry.
     • Direct contributions to 3/5 of the orders of classical arcitecture
       • Doric
         • -Circular, simple and plain capital on top of column -Smooth surfaced -Stout -No base -The Parthenon -Doric structure is used in many buildings such as the U.S Capitol, where 40 sandstone Doric columns brace the arches in the rotunda.
       • Ionic
         • -Thinnest and smallest -Stand on base -necks of columns contain intricate designs -Volutes on top of columns (two scrolls) -Ionic structures are seen in a part of the U.S. Capitol building.  The Old Senate Chamber consists of eight ionic marble columns.
       • Corinthian
         • -Not as popular -Named after city of Corinth  -Many curly leaves carved into column -Similar in shape to Ionic -Corinthian columns are also seen in the Capitol building. At the exterior there are 28 white marble columns that have been influenced by ancient Greek architecture 
   • Euclid: Greek mathematician, "father of geometry", Euclid's Elements
     • Euclid, a Greek mathematician, was thought of as the "father of geometry".  He has a book credited to him titled, Euclid's Elements. It is the main textbook for mathematics, especially geometry, and is the most influential work in math.

2. Philosophy

   • Plato
     • -Philosopher in Classical Greece -Taught by Socrates-Innovator of the written dialogue -Founder of western philosophy and science-Plato is the founder of the Academy in Athens, the first university in the Western world.-Well known for his Dialogues,  a composition of writing in which he explains the perfect political system  -Plato influences us today because he brought into perspective some of the main subjects we now value and build careers off of.
   • Socrates
     • -Greek philosopher -Frequently mocked in plays -Was in Peloponnesian War, Delium, Amphipolis and Potidaea, where he saved the life of the General -Focused on discussions to find answers -Brought to trial and sentenced to death by poisoning -Socrates influences us today with his idea that discussion does result with answers and we learn more. We acknowledge his ideas by performing Socratic Seminars. 
     • Peloponnesian War
       • -30 year conflict between Athens and Sparta -Ended the Golden Age of Athens-Spartans lead by Pericles -Delian League, lead by Athens-Spartans believed there shouldn't be democracy-Spartans eventually won and 
       • Pericles
         • -General of Athens during The Golden Age and the Peloponnesian War -Acclaimed as the "first citizen of Athens" -His death followed the Peloponnesian War
       • Persian War
         • -Conflict between Greece and Persia -Persia lead by Darius -Greece lead by Alexander The Great -Athens supported Ionian Greeks when they were rebelling in Anatolia against Persians -Greece won resulting in the creating of the Delian League, and eventually the Peloponnesian War
         • Darius III
           • -Cambyses’ successor Persian leader during the Persian Wars -Ruled Persia from 336-330 B.C. -began his career as a member of the king’s bodyguard then took over-Conquered Egypt, western Anatolia, and part of India -Unable to conquer Greece-Divided his empire into 20 provinces allowing them to all speak their own languages and practice their own religions -Created the Royal Road, cutting the travel time from 3 months to around 7 days. -Murdered by his provincial govnernor -Darius influenced his people and created an new and advanced way to travel by building the Royal Road. This lead to creating larger and more complex roads that are used today.
           • Cambyses II
             • -Son of Cyrus the Great -Ruled Persia from 530-522 B.C. -Expanded the Persian empire by conquering Egypt, but scorned the Egyptian religion -Ordered the images of Egyptian Gods to be burned -Died mysteriously after only 8 years of ruling -Cambyses II influenced us by setting an example that you don't have to be like your parents. Cambyses' father was one of the nicest rulers, accepting everyone and not allowing death, and Cambyses was the complete opposite. He was unconvinced that the Egyptian religion was worthy of keeping and he did his best to destroy it. 
             • Cyrus The Great
               • -Leader of Persia 600/576-530 B.C. -One of the Seven Wise Men of Greece -Military genus -Kind towards the inhabitants of the kingdoms he conquered -Did not allow any looting or killing -Honored other religions and customs -Freed the Jewish captives in Babylonia  -Jewish considered him one of God’s anointed ones -Was killed as he fought nomadic invaders  -Cyrus the Great influences us today because he showed us that it is possible to be in power and to be respected without being cruel. He also showed everyone that the Jewish people were not their enemies and that they should be treated the same as everyone else. Cyrus the Great was one of the first people to really believe in being equal.
         • Alexander The Great
           • -Greek leader during the Persian Wars -Son of Philip of Macedonia-Became king at 20 years old-Educated leader -Lead 35,000 soldiers to Anatolia in 334 BC, defeating Persia and Darius for the first time -Smart war strategist  -Conquered Egypt -Had plans to conquer all of Persian Empire -Created phalanx attack, and used it to end Persia's power  -Died from a sickness at 32  -Alexander the Great influenced his people by using a new war strategy that allowed them to defeat opponents even they were larger in numbers. This strategy was the reason the Greeks were able to conquer 11,000 miles of territory.
           • King Philip II
             • -King of Macedonia -Conquered Greece in battle of Chaeronea -Father of Alexander the Great -Created a unified, systematic army/battle tactic -Was killed on way to daughter's wedding -Philip influenced the people of his country and others by allowing the peasants to be a part of the army instead of living and staying as peasants. He allowed people of his country and the ones he invaded to pursue a better life than the one they thought they were destined to have.
           • Macedonian Wars
             • -four conflicts between the ancient Roman Republic and Macedonia. -Macedonia lead by Philip V - helped lead to Roman domination of the entire eastern Mediterranean area -The First Macedonian War (215–205 bc) occurred, while Rome was preoccupied with fighting Carthage.
         • Delian League
           • -Association of Greek city-states -Reason of aligning was to stand against Persia if they decided to come back -150-330 members -Athens began to use the army for their own purposes leading to conflict between the less and more powerful members -Fought against Sparta in the Battle of Thermopylae  -League came to an end when the Peloponnesian war came to an end in 404 BC -Was set up like some alliances between countries today, and most likely influenced the ideas of creating alliances like the European Union.
           • Leonidas I
             • -General of Sparta during the Battle of Thermopylae -Warrior King of Sparta -Lead 300 Spartans against the Persians -All died but bought the Greeks time to come and fight -Leonidas was influential because without putting up a fight the Greeks wouldn't have been able to preserve their culture from the Persians.
     • Herodotus
       • -a Greek historian, "Father of History" -born in Halicarnassus in the Persian empire, around the same age as Socrates -Treated historical subjects as a method of investigation -collected his materials systematically and critically, and then arranging -Herodotus has influenced us by changing the way to look at history. He decided to go off from the most common "Homeric" method, and think of things they way they came to him. 
   • Aristotle
     • -Greek Philosopher and Scientist  -Taught by Plato -Had many disagreements with Plato and his ways of teaching -Founded his own school,  Lyceum, in Athens - Wrote about 200 works -Died from a digestive organs disease -Aristotle, known as "The First Teacher" influenced us by making important contributions and discoveries from biology to philosophy that are still accurate today.

3. Greek Civilizations

   • Minoan Civilization
     • -Civilization of Crete -3000 B.C. to about 1100 B.C. -The first center of high civilization in that area -Created sophisticated art such as seals, pottery and frescoes -spread across the Aegean Sea to the mainland of Greece in 1580 B.C. -The Minoan Civilization is of great influence to us and generations before. They are so important because of their art. The Minoans created some of the most elaborate art of that time, prompting the ideas of art in the future.
   • Mycenaean Civilization
     • -1600 to 1100 BCE -Culture was dependent of the Minoans -Existed as a city-state -By 2nd century A.D. it was in ruins -last phase of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece -Introduced engineering, architecture, and military framework creating the base for these subjects that have developed so much in today's world.
     • Dark Ages
       • -1150 B.C.E.-800 B.C.E. -Began with the end of Mycenaean civilization -Period of time where there was little cultural growth  -Oral history, such as the phoenician alphabet  emerged out of the darkness influencing us today by carving the path for literature.
       • First Olympic Games
         • -Were created in 776 BC, a couple years after the dark ages -In Olympia, in south west Greece - Every four years, around 50,000 people came from all over the Greek world to watch and take part. -Winners were given a wreath of leaves  -Athletes were seen as being touched by the gods. -Events were running, discus, javelin, long jump, boxing, chariot racing and wrestling -The first Olympic Games are of influence to us because the Olympic games are still played in today.

4. Beliefs

   • Mythology
     • -Used to explain the ways of the world -Worshiped Gods and Goddesses -Created The Olympic Games to worship the King of the Gods, Zeus -Influence us today by being the topic of several book and movies that have been popular. The Olympic Games are no longer thought of as being a tribute to Zeus, but the Gods are still present in other aspects of our lives.
   • Zoroastrianism
     • -Founded by a Persian Prophet, Zoroaster -ancient pre-Islamic religion of Iran -Believed that “the earth is a battleground where a great struggle is fought between the spirit of good and the spirit of evil” Actively Learn - believed in one god, Ahura Mazda who will judge everyone according to how well s/he fought the battle for good -Declined in the 7th century -Influences us today by showing that it was acceptable to create and believe in your own religion even after you grew up with something else. It also influenced the development of Judaism, a religion that is still here today.
   • Lawmakers
     • Solon
       • -Athenian statesman lawmaker, and poet, for pleasure and propoganda  --one of the Seven Wise Men of Greece -Remembered because he laid the foundations of democracy, that now plays a big factor in our lives being as it is one of the things we hold dear in the United States, and other places across the world.
     • Draco
       • -athenian lawmaker -harsh laws punished trivial and serious crimes in death -known for Draco’s code, which is generally dated to 621, which was later denounced as harsh -Draco replaced verbal law with written law. This has a direct effect on how our government systems are today, and make the punishments more uniform.

5. The Arts

   • Music
     • Lyre
       • -Stringed musical instrument -Most important and well known instrument in Greek world -Build similarly to a common day harp
     • Aulos
       • -Musical wind instrument -played in festivals, processions of births and deaths, athletic games -build like a double recorder
     • Sistrum
       • - musical percussion instrument -First used by the ancient Egyptians
     • Pan Flute or Panpipes
       • -Musical wind instrument -Most commonly played by shepards
   • Writers
     • Homer
       • -Blind storyteller -"Wrote" the Iliad and The Odyssey - born sometime between the 12th and 8th centuries B.C -Born near today’s turkey -Not much is known about Homer -Influenced us by creating two of  the most popular works of literature that is read in schools across the world. The Odyssey has been compared to The Bible for the Greeks.
     • Sophocles
       • -Greek playwright -one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived -7/120 of his plays have survived -Had well developed characters -Influenced the development of drama by adding a third character to his plays, making the plot of his stories more intense.
     • Aristophanes
       • -Most famous Comic playwright -11/40 of his plays have survived -known as the Father of Comedy -Feared because of his powers of ridicule -Wrote a play mocking Socrates at his trial -His plays provide a helpful look into many of the political and social parts of ancient Greece -Aristophanes influenced modern comedy by introducing dark humor, prop comedy and many others that are so commonly used in creations today.
     • Aesop
       • -Ancient Greek story teller  -Has many fables, now called Aesop’s Fables -numerous tales credited to him were gathered across the centuries -Aesop most commonly wrote stories containing inanimate objects with human traits. This influenced many well known stories such as The Beauty and The Beast, and Toy Story.
     • Hesiod
       • -Greek poet -First poet to give himself an active role to play -Active around the same time as Homer -wrote The Theogony" and "Works and Days -Credited with establishing Greek religious customs.  -Wrote about Greek mythology, farming techniques, and is thought of as history's first economist.  -Changed the way of living in ancient Greece by introducing these new techniques and customs. Influenced people's lives by showing them an unfamiliar way to lead their everyday lives.

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