Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea

1. Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea Mr. Morris World History

2. Key Terms • Mycenaean • Trojan War • Dorian • Homer • Epic • Myth

3. Geography Shapes Greek Life • Mountainous peninsula • Bordered by Aegean, Ionian, and Mediterranean Seas

4. The Sea • Most Greeks rarely had to travel more than 85 miles to reach the sea • Sea was an important transportation route for Greeks • Greeks became skilled sailors, connecting Greece with other societies • Very helpful • Why would this be such a good thing?

5. The Land • Mountain ranges covered 75% of Ancient Greece • Divided the land into many different regions • Independent communities in valleys and surrounding mountains • Loyalty lie to these small communities

6. The Land • Land transportation very difficult • Virtually no roads • Took days to complete trips that would be only hours today • Not enough suitable land for growing crops, irrigating, or raising livestock

7. The Climate • Average temperatures ranged from 48-80 degrees • What would you do if temperatures were like that here? • Greeks spent lots of time outside at public events • Met often at these for many different purposes

8. Mycenaeans • Settled on the Greek mainland around 2000 B.C. • Named after Mycenae, their main city • Mycenae was fortified with walls over 20 feet thick • Ruled by warrior-kings from 1600-1000 B.C.

9. Contact with Minoans • After 1500 B.C., the Mycenaeans and the Minoans came into contact with one another • Realized the value of seafaring trade • Mycenaeans began to sail the Mediterranean and trade with many other civilizations • Adopted Minoan writing system • These two cultures were the basis of Greek religion, art, politics, and literature • Western civilization rooted in these civilizations

10. The Trojan War • Mycenaeans fought against Troy in the 1200s B.C. • Troy – independent trading city • War began after a Trojan prince kidnapped Helen, the wife of a Greek king • This war was thought to be fictional until the 1870s, but an archaeological find supported the story

11. The Dorians • Around 1200 B.C., the Mycenaean civilization collapsed • Cities attacked and burned by sea raiders • Dorians moved into the area after the war • Far less advanced • Economy collapsed, trade completely stopped • Writing was lost • What does this mean?

12. Homer • Greatest storyteller of the time • No writing, history had to be spoken • Blind man, composed many poems speaking of heroic deeds such as the Trojan War, which was the basis for The Iliad, one of Homer’s greatest epics

13. Homer’s The Iliad • The heroes in The Iliad are Achilles the Greek and Hector of Troy • Hector displays arete– honor and excellence – a Greek heroic characteristic that could be displayed in athletics and war

14. Greeks Create Myths • Greeks had a rich set of myths about their gods • Homer and Hesiod each had epics describing mysteries of nature and human passions • Changing of the seasons • Greeks attributed human qualities to their gods such as love, hate, and jealousy • Zeus lived on Mount Olympus and was the ruler of the gods