GREEK LITERATURE

Greek literature dates back from the ancient Greek literature, beginning in 800 BC, to the modern Greek
literature of today. All ancient Greek literature was to some degree oral in nature, and the earliest
literature was completely so. The Greeks created poetry before making use of writing for literary
purposes. Poems created in the Preclassical period were meant to be sung or recited (writing was little
known before the 7th century BC). Most poems focused on myths, legends that were part folktale and
part religion. Tragedies and comedies emerged around 600 BC.

Ancient Greek literature was written in an Ancient Greek dialect, literature ranges from the oldest
surviving written works until works from approximately the fifth century AD. This time period is divided
into these periods:

1: Preclassical

2: Classical

3: Hellenistic

4: Roman periods.

Preclassical Greek literature primarily revolved around myths and include the works of Homer; the Iliad
and the Odyssey. At the beginning of Greek literature stand the works of Homer; the Iliad and the
Odyssey. Though dates of composition vary, these works were fixed around 800 BC or after. Another
significant figure was the poet Hesiod. His two surviving works are Works and Days and Theogony.

The Classical period saw the dawn of drama and history. During the classical period, many of the genres
of western literature became more prominent. Lyrical poetry, odes, pastorals, elegies, epigrams;
dramatic presentations of comedy and tragedy; histories, rhetorical treatises, philosophical dialectics,
and philosophical treatises all arose in this period.[4]Three philosophers are especially notable:

1: Socrates

2: Plato

3: Aristotle

During the Roman era, significant contributions were made in a variety of subjects, including history,
philosophy, and the sciences.

The two major lyrical poets were Sappho and Pindar. Of the hundreds of tragedies written and
performed during this time period, only a limited number of plays survived. These plays are authored by

1: Aeschylus (e.g. Orestia, Agamemnon)

2: Sophocles (e.g. Electra, Oedipus rex, Antigone)

3: Euripides (e.g. Medea)

The comedy arose from a ritual in honor of Dionysus. These plays were full of obscenity, abuse, and
insult. The surviving plays by Aristophanes are a treasure trove(delightful things) of comic presentation.
What is mythology?

---->Mythology (from the Greek mythos for story-of-the-people, and logos for word or speech, so the
spoken story of a people) is the study and interpretation of often sacred tales or fables of a culture
known as myths or the collection of such stories which deal with various aspects of the human
condition: good and evil; the meaning of suffering; human origins; the origin of place-names, animals,
cultural values, and traditions; the meaning of life and death; the afterlife; and the gods or a god. Myths
express the beliefs and values about these subjects held by a certain culture.

What is an Epic?

---->An epic is a long, often book-length, narrative in verse form that retells the heroic journey of a single
person or a group of persons. Elements that typically distinguish epics include superhuman deeds,
fabulous adventures, highly stylized language, and a blending of lyrical and dramatic traditions.

---->An epic is a long narrative poem in elevated style recounting the deeds of a legendary or historical
hero. Iliad and the Odyssey are epics.

What is Tragedy?

---->A play which deals with tragic events and having an unhappy ending, especially one concerning the
downfall of the main character. For example, oedipus rex, Shakespearen tragedies etc.