Fundamentals of Greece in the Heroic Age

1
Fundamentals of Greece in the Heroic Age

• Homer

2
The gods

• Zeus
• Hera
• Hephaistos
• Apollo

3
The gods (cont.)

• Artemis
• Athena,
• Aphrodite
• Hermes, the messenger god

4
Timeline

• Greek Dark Ages ca. 1000-800 BC
• Archaic Period ca. 800-500 BC
• Homer ca. 750 BC
• Classical Period ca. 500-323 BC
• Persian Wars 490-479 BC (Herodotus)
• Peloponnesian War 431-404 BC (Thucydides)
• Hellenistic Period ca. 323-150 BC

5
Terms and Questions

• arete
• agon
• Iliad, Odyssey
• What qualities in a man did the ancient Greeks
  admire?
• What was the position of women in this culture?
• What did the Greeks of this period think of
  homosexuality? Why was this the case?
• What was one of the purposes of homosexual
  relations between men?

6
Discussion Questions

• Most scholars agree that the Iliad was passed
  down by word of mouth over many generations
  before it was written down. Is there evidence you
  could use from the source to support such a
  conclusion? What are the implications for the
  Iliad as an historical source?
• What is the basis for the quarrel between
  Achilles and Agamemnon? How and why does Achilles
  decide not to attack the king? What does this
  exchange tell us about the role of women in
  warfare and in the household? about the pride of
  warriors? about the power of gods?
• What do the scenes involving negotiations among
  the gods tell us about the relative power of the
  various gods?
• Agamemnon backs down from his position after his
  Greeks suffer reversals in war. Why does Achilles
  refuse his offer? What concession does Achilles
  make?

7
Question to Ponder

• What is your assessment of the heroic ideal, as
  revealed in this selection of the Iliad? Is there
  anything admirable about it? Anything you find
  worthy of criticism?