Ch. 5.3Democracy and Greece’s Golden Age

Ch. 5.3 Key Terms and People•Direct democracy•Classical art• Tragedy•Comedy•Peloponnesian War• Socrates•Plato •Aristotle

The Golden Age of Athens•477-431 BC•Came about after Greece defeated the Persians•Drama, sculpture, poetry, philosophy, architecture, and science

flourished•Also known as the “Age of Pericles”• Led Athens in the Peloponnesian War

Pericles’ Plan for Athens(461-429 BC)

•Three goals for Athens1. Strengthen Athenian democracy2. Hold and strengthen the empire3. Glorify Athens

Goal # 1: Stronger Democracy• Increased the number of paid government jobs which

benefitted people who were not wealthy• Instituted direct democracy• Citizens rule directly and not through elected representatives

Goal #2: Strengthen the Empire•Helped establish and eventually led the Delian League after the

Persian Wars•Alliance of Greek city-states

•Grew Athens navy• Started dominating other city-states which led to conflicts

Goal #3: Glorify Athens•Used money from the Delian League to buy gold, marble and

ivory •Used money from the Delian League to hire artists, architects,

and workers to build buildings and sculptures•Phidias was hired to build the Parthenon•Greek sculptors focused on beauty, not realism•Classical art focused on simplicity and beingwell proportioned

Phidias’ Parthenon

Model of Parthenon in Nashville, TN

Goddess Athena Statue Inside Parthenon-Phidias

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia-Phidias

Greek Drama-Tragedy and Comedy• A tragedy was a serious drama about common themes such as love,

hate, war, or betrayal• The hero usually was an important person and often gifted with

extraordinary abilities• A tragic flaw usually caused the hero’s downfall, usually excessive

pride• Sophocles wrote Oedipus the King , a famous tragedy

Greek Drama-Tragedy and Comedy• A comedy contained scenes filled with humor• Playwrights often made fun of politics and respected people and ideas

of the time• Aristophanes was a famous writer of comedies • The fact that Athenians could listen to criticism of themselves showed

the freedom that existed in democratic Athens

The Start of the Greatest Subject in Recorded History

• History• Herodotus pioneered the accurate reporting of events• Thucydides believed that certain types of events and political situations

recur over time • Studying those events and situations would aid in understanding the

present• The approaches Thucydides used in his work still guide historians

today

Peloponnesian War431-404 BC

• Fought between Athens and Sparta• Came about as a result of Sparta not

liking Athens growth of wealth and power in the area• Athens was acting like a bully• Sparta had a better army, Athens had a

better navy•With the help of a plague that hit

Athens, Sparta eventually won • Video

Pericles Plan to Win

Rise of the Philosophers• A philosopher is someone who tries to explain the nature of life• After losing to Sparta in the Peloponnesian War, people in Athens turned to

philosophers for answers• Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle

Socrates 470-399 BC• Socrates was a philosopher of Ancient

Greece• Socrates taught by asking questions• This method of questioning is still

called the Socratic method•Put on trial and found guilty for

“corrupting the youth of Athens”• Put to death-hemlock

• “There is only one good, knowledge, and one evil, ignorance”

Plato 427-347 BC• Plato was a student of Socrates• He started a school called The Academy

that lasted 900 years•Wrote The Republic• The book talked about a perfectly

governed society-not a democracy• In his ideal society, all citizens would fall

naturally into three groups: farmers and artisans, warriors, and the ruling class • The person with the greatest intellect

from the ruling class would be chosen king

Aristotle 384-322 BC•Aristotle was a student of Plato•He wrote about science, art, law, poetry,

government, etc.• Taught Alexander the Great• “He who studies how things originated

will achieve the clearest view of them.”

Ch. 5.4 Alexander’s Empire

Ch. 5.4 Key Terms and People•Philip II•Macedonia•Alexander the Great•Darius III

King Philip II of Macedon 382-336 BC• Goal was to take over all of Greece and

then to get revenge by taking over the Persian Empire • Became King of Macedon in 359 BC

Macedonions• Lived in mountainous villages, not city-

states•Macedonians considered themselves to

be Greek but were looked down upon by the big city-states• Philip II built up his military and

eventually invaded and defeated the Greek city-states• Used the phalanx and cavalry to great

effect

Alexander the III of Macedon 356-323 BC“Alexander the Great”

• Took over for his father, Philp, in 336 BC• Philip was assassinated at his daughter’s

wedding by a former bodyguard(Pausanias)• Ruled Greece and it’s empire for only 13

years(336-323 BC)• Due to his great accomplishments, became

known as Alexander the Great•Was taught by Aristotle• Died from high fever-possibly from typhoid

fever or malaria

• After taking power, Alexander eliminated his opponents to the throne and then moved to consolidate Greece• Alexander then turned east to take over of the Persian Empire and

achieve the goal of his father• After losing some battles, Darius III retreated quickly and offered

Alexander all lands west of the Euphrates River

• Alexander the Great refused Darius III’s offer and announced he would take the entire Persian Empire• In 332 BC, Alexander the Great moved into Egypt and “liberated” Egypt

from the Persians• The Egyptians crowned Alexander pharaoh• Founded the Egyptian city of Alexandria

• After conquering Egypt, Alexander moved into Mesopotamia and finished the job of defeating Darius III and the Persians• The capital city of the Persian Empire, Persepolis(in Iran), was burned by

Alexander as possible revenge for the Persians burning Athens

• Alexander would continue east into India where he eventually ran into a strong Indian army• His troops were tired-fighting for 11 years and traveled more than

11,000 miles• Even after defeating the Indian army in a battle, the monsoons of India

were having an impact and Alexander agreed to turn back west• Alexander woulddie from disease not long after

Alexander the Great’s Legacy• Greek Empire split into three sections(map next slide)• Greek city-states led by Antigonus• Egypt led by Ptolemy• Former Persian Empire ruled by Seleucus

• Leaders all ruled with absolute power

•Cultural diffusion between east and west

Ch. 5.5The Spread of Hellenistic Culture

• Hellenistic culture became common all throughout the Greek Empire• Greek, Egyptian, Persian and Indian cultures mixed• Language-Koine• Trade• Cities• Science and technology• Philosophy, art and architecture

Alexandria, Egypt

Lighthouse at Alexandria

Ancient Library at Alexandria

Astronomy

Mathematics• Euclid established geometry•Archimedes estimated the value of pi and the law of the lever

Colossus of Rhodes