Greek Art, Government and Architecture

Art
 - Sculptures
 - Pottery
 - Mosaic Art - make of small piece of something
 - Architecture
 - metal
 - Renaissance

Government
 - democracy Strengthened
   - get paid
   - middle or lower class citizens involve in government
 - Athenian
   - Citizens male 18
   - Executive branch

Architecture
 - oldest was from 500 BCE
 - temple
 - theatre
 - 3 type of column
   - Doric Columns: most simple
   - Ionic Column: thinnest, smallest
   -  Corinthian Column: most omate
- Parthenon
   - master piece
   - 447 BC
   - honor athena
 - Nike of Samothrace
   - honor see battle and the Goddess Nike
   - 8ft high
   - winged victory Samothrace
 - Acropolis
   - protect Athens
   - on hill

Pericles and The Delian League

Pericles: (477-441 BC)
 - He ruled in the golden age of Athens
 - big leader

(461-429 BCE)
 - Pericles dominated during this period
 - often called the age of Pericles
 - 3 goals
  - Strengthen Athenian democracy
  - Hold on strengthen the enemies
  - Glorify Athens

Stronger Democracy
 - He increased the number of public
 - The poorest people can involve

Start of Direct Democracy
 - Direct Democracy: a from of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives
 - important legacy of the age of 

Glorifying Athens
 - 15 years to build Parthenon

 - Aspasia is having a affair with Pericles
 - First sign as men treat women equally

Peloponnesian War
 - Sparta and Athens
 - The strategy worked well for Athens but the plague hit the Athens
 - Hubris - over confident


The Delian League
 - Delian League is organized after the was
 - to make a truce and keep all the city-states together
 - United Nation is pretty close to the Delian League
 - Athens control the Delian League gathered city-states use their money to build things
 - during the age of Pericles

Theatre

- Costumes and Masks

The actors were so far away from the audience that without the aid of exaggerated costumes and masks, they would be difficult to see. 

The masks were made of linen or cork, so none have survived. Tragic masks carried mournful or pained expressions, while comic masks were smiling or leering. The shape of the mask amplified the actor's voice, making his words easier for the audience to hear

- Comedy

A comedy contained scenes filled with slapstick situations and crude humor. It is an entertainment consisting of jokes and satire, intended to make audience laugh.Playwrights often made fun of politics and respected people and ideas of the time.

- Dramatists

- Aristophanes

- wrote the first great comedies including The Birds and Lysistrata

- Lysistrata portrayed the women of Athens forcing their husbands to end the Peloponnesian War

- Menander

- wrote more than a hundred comedies.

- Aspis ("The Shield"; about half) is one of his famous works.

Greek Theatre

Greek Theatre:

- The buildings were called a theatron.

- three main element

   - the orchestra

      - a large circular or rectangular area at the center part of the theatre, where the play, dance, religious rites, acting used to take place.

   - the skene

      - a large rectangular building situated behind the orchestra, used as a backstage. Actors could change their costumes and masks. Rising from the circle of the orchestra was the audience.

   - the audience.

      - the cast of a Greek play in the Dionysia was comprised of amateur, not professionals (all male).

Democracy and Greece's Golden Age

Culture Interaction:
 - Democratic principles and classical culture flourished during Greece's golden age.

Setting the stage
 - 477 - 431 B.C.
 - Athens experience a growth in intellectual and artistic learning.
 - the Golden Age of Athens.

Pericles Plan for Athens
Pericles led Athens during much of its golden age. From 461-429 B.C. is called the Age of Pericles. He had three goals: 1. to strengthen Athenian democracy, 2. to hold and strengthen the empire, 3. to glorify Athens.
 - Stronger Democracy
  - Pericles increased the number of public officials who were paid salaries. So Athens had more citizens engaging in self-government than any other city-state in Greece, this reform made Athens one of the most democracy government in history.
  - Direct democracy is a form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives.
 - Athenian Empire
  - after the defeat of the Persians, Athens helped organized the Delian League. They use the money to make Athenian navy the strongest in the Mediterranean. Strong navy was important because it helped Athens strengthen the safety of its empire.
 - Glorifying Athens
  - Pericles also used the money to beautify Athens.

Glorious Art and Architecture
Pericles' goal was to have the greatest Greek artists and architects create magnificent sculptures and buildings to glorify Athens. One of architecture's novelist works - the Parthenon
 - Architecture and Sculpture
  - the Parthenon, a masterpiece of architectural design and craftsmanship, was not unique in style.Phidias crafted a giant statue of Athena that only contained such precious materials as gold and ivory, but also stood over 30 feet tall.
  - They wanted to portray ideal beauty, not realism. Their values of harmony, order, balance, and proportion became the standard of what is called classical art.

Drama and History
The Greeks invented drama as an art form and built the first theaters in the West.
 - Tragedy and Comedy
  - They wrote two kinds of drama - tragedy and comedy. A tragedy was a serious drama about common themes such as love, hate, war, or betrayal. They have a main character, or tragic hero.
  - Aeschylus wrote more than 80 plays. Sophocles wrote more than 100 plays, Euripides, author of the play Medea, often featured strong women in his works.
  - a comedy contained scenes filled with slapstick situations and crude humor. Play wrights often made fun of politics and respected people and ideas of the time.
 - History
  - Herodotus, a Greek who lived in Athens for a time, pioneered the accurate reporting of events. He wrote the first book of history.

Class Notes (Feb 11th)

A new form of government
 - citizens could participate (1/5 of Athenians were citizens free adult male property owners born in Athens)
 - after several years Athens practiced
  - state is ruled by citizens
  - rule is based on citizenship
  - in the agora, citizens argued, made speeches, votes (yes-white stone, no-black stone)
  - two most powerful: Spartan, Athens
  - Persian War, Persian Empire vs. Greece

Cyber Day - Deconstructing History: The Acropolis

• What is the Greek Acropolis?
• Athens
• What was the Acropolis used for?
• Ancient Athenians would come here to pray, or for protection in times of invasion
• When and why was the Parthenon built?
• most famous surviving building of Ancient Greece, was built over 2500 years ago as a temple to the Goddess Athena
• Who ordered the Parthenon to be built?
• the Athenians believed she helped the Greeks defeat the Persian Empire, Pericles, a famous Greek politician ordered the  construction
• When was the Parthenon constructed?
• started in 447 B.C.
• What is the Parthenon made of?
• made of 30,000 tons of the finest white marble
• What do we mean by “Doric-style” construction?
• the Parthenon is considered to be the finest example of Doric-style construction, simple, unadorned style, characterized by simple columns
• What can be found inside the Parthenon?
• 40 foot statue of Athena
• When was the Parthenon damaged, and by whom?
• was severly damaged in 1687 when the Venetians attacked Athens.