Classical Greece: Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea PDF

Name _____________________________ Class _______________________ Date ____________ Classical Greece Lesson 1 Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea Key Terms and People Mycenaean member of a group who settled on the G...

Name _____________________________ Class _______________________ Date ____________ Classical Greece Lesson 1 Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea Key Terms and People Mycenaean member of a group who settled on the Greek mainland around 2000 BC Trojan War war in which the Mycenaeans attacked the city of Troy Dorian member of a group of people who migrated into the Greek mainland Homer Greek poet who wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey epic heroic story told in the form of a long poem myth traditional story that explains why the world is the way it is Before You Read In the last lesson, you read about belief systems in ancient China and the Qin Dynasty. In this lesson, you will read about the development of culture in ancient Greece. As You Read Use a chart to organize information about the roots of Greek culture. GeoGRAPHY SHAPeS GReeK Life The Greeks had easy access to the How did geography influence sea, however. They became excellent the Greeks? sailors. Trade became important because The lives of the ancient Greeks were Greece had few natural resources. shaped by the geography of their land. The climate is mild. As a result, Greek Greece is a rocky land with high people spent much time outdoors. They mountains and deep valleys. These land attended public events and even forms were like barriers. Moving over conducted government outside. the land was difficult. For these reasons, 1. Why was sea trade important for Greeks living in different areas could the Greeks? not be easily united. Good farmland covered only about one-fourth of Greece and could not support many people. The need for more living space and the lack of good farmland may have influenced the Greeks to find new colonies. © Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company 55 Guided Reading Workbook Name ______________________________ Class ________________________ Date _____________ Lesson 1, continued Mycenaean civilization Greek culture Declines Develops unDer the Dorians Who were the Mycenaeans? What was Greece like under A large wave of people moved from the Dorians? Europe, India, and Southwest Asia. The culture of the Mycenaeans fell Some of these people settled on the about 1200 BC. Sea raiders destroyed Greek mainland around 2000 BC. They their palaces. A less advanced people were later called Mycenaeans. They were called the Dorians occupied the land. ruled by powerful warrior-kings. For the next 400 years, Greece went into The Mycenaeans developed a strong decline. No written records exist from culture. They borrowed from the this period. Little is known about Minoan culture of Crete. They adapted this era. the Minoan form of writing and artistic The spoken word lived on, however. design. The Mycenaeans also became A great storyteller named Homer made interested in trade. up epics, or long poems, based on tales According to legend, Mycenaeans he heard. Epics are about heroes and fought a long war with the people of their deeds. One of Homer’s great epics Troy, a city in Turkey. This conflict was was the Iliad. It centers on the heroes of called the Trojan War. the Trojan War. The heroes of the Iliad The war was said to have started are warriors. Homer tells about their because a Trojan youth kidnapped a courage and noble actions in battle. Greek woman. Her name was Helen. The Greeks also created a rich set of She was the beautiful wife of a Greek myths. These stories explain the actions king. The Greek army later of gods and events in nature. In Greek destroyed Troy. myths, gods often act like humans. For 2. How were the Mycenaeans example, they show feelings, such as influenced by the Minoans? love, hate, and jealousy. Unlike humans, though, the Greek gods lived forever. 3. How did Homer keep Greek culture alive under the Dorians? © Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company 56 Guided Reading Workbook Name ______________________________ Class ________________________ Date _____________ Lesson 1, continued As you read this lesson, make notes in the chart to explain how each geographic characteristic or historical event influenced the history and culture of early Greek civilization. History and Culture 1. 2. 3. Little fertile farmland 4. Moderate climate 5. Mycenaean adaptation of Minoan culture 6. The Trojan War 7. The collapse of Mycenaean civilization © Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company 57 Guided Reading Workbook