Archaic Period of Greek Literature

• Greek Literature has three periods
  • Archaic: Until the end of the 6th century BC
  • Classical: 5th and 4th centuries BC
  • Hellenistic: 3rd century BC onward

Archaic Age

• Ancient Greek history and literature mark this period
• A time of transformation for Greek civilization
• Followed the Greek Dark Ages
• The Greek Dark ages were a period of decline after the fall of the Mycenaean civilization
• Classical Age followed, with figures like Socrates and Plato
• Myth was the core feature
  • It incorporated history and folklore
• Poets' works were communicated orally
• Famous poets included Homer (Iliad and Odyssey) and Hesiod (The Theogony)
• Common themes included heroism, divine intervention, fate, honor, and morality
• Formed the foundation of later Greek literature and Western Literary Tradition

Significant Examples of Literary Work During Archaic Age

• Homer is known as the "Father of Western Literature"
  • His works include the Iliad and Odyssey
• The Iliad is a poem of contrasts
  • Gods and mortals, divine and human, as well as war and peace
• The Odyssey is a ten-year odyssey
  • A Ten year odyssey about The Trojan War hero Odysseus' attempt to return home
• Hesiod was a near-contemporary of Homer, but with a different focus
  • His work includes the Theogony The Theogony is account of the creation of the universe and the generations of the Gods.
• Aesop created short allegorical collections of fables
• Sappho was a female lyric poet
  • Known as the 10th muse
  • Wrote hymns to the Gods

Classical Age

• The golden age of Greek literature and culture
• A shift from mythological to more human-centered stories
• Major genres of the time included tragedy, comedy, history, philosophy, and rhetoric
• Athens became a cultural center during the Age of Pericles
• Oral recitation of poetry and drama began during this time
• The golden age of rhetoric and oratory led to questions of truth and morality

Greek Writers of the Classic Age

• Aeschylus created the tragic drama
  • His themes were focussed on God and Divinity/Divine beings
• Sophocles wrote tragedy
  • His common themes were Religions and moral issues
• Euripides wrote tragedy
  • Used themes such as Skeptical enlightenment and doubts about the traditional picture of the Gods
  • Known for psychological depth and challenging norms
  • Medea is about a woman who takes revenge on her unfaithful husband
• Aristophanes
  • Greatest comedic poet
  • The most famous comic playwright
  • Plays were often satirical and political
• Plato
  • Works focused on Culture, ethics, metaphysics, and politics (Humankind’s highest study). which became the basis of Western Philosophy
  • Used dialogues to explore justice, truth, beauty, and politics
  • The Republic discusses the ideal state and the philosopher-king
• Aristotle expanded on Physics, natural history, psychology, and literary criticism
  • Wrote on logic, science, ethics, and literary theory
  • Poetics is the first literary criticism text, analyzing tragedy and epic poetry

Hellenistic Age

• Began after Alexander the Great's conquests
  • Alexander Died in 323 BC
• Greek culture and language spread across the Mediterranean and Near East
• There was a Focus shift from public life to personal themes
  • Themes included love, individuality, and private emotions
• The literary center moved from Athens to Alexandria in Egypt
• Prosperity and progress in the arts, literature, theater, architecture, music, mathematics, science, and philosophy
• The new comedy and Alexanderian comedy were born
• Greek literature was pure and unaffected by other cultures

Key features of Hellenistic Age

• Emphasis on scholarship, library culture, and literary refinement
• Utilized pastoral poetry, elegies, and shorter, more polished poems
• Literature became more learned, allusive, and elitist