Greek

Literature
Historical and
Geographical
Background…
 Greek
♣ The name Greece comes from the
Latin Graecia which in turn comes
from the Greek word Graikoi, the
original name of the people living in
Dodona. However, the word is used to
address people living in Greece.

♣ The original Greek name was, and

still is Hellas., the land of the Helens.
 Greek
♣ Originally, this was a small area
south of Thessalia, but it was widely
used for people with a Greek
background and culture, stretching
from the West Coast of Asia Minor,
southern Italy and Sicily to the Pyrenes
and Northern Africa.
 Greek
♣ Influences from their art and culture
have made a great impact on the
European and American culture. Their
highly organized society (even the word
politics is a Greek word), their system of
justice, and of course their art, the
sculptures, statues, plays and mythology
have been a major source of inspiration.
 Greek
Mythology
Greek Mythology

Studying Greek Literature would always

lead one to the study and understanding of
its mythology. One would have to familiarize
himself with the uniqueness of its gods and
goddesses.

The origin of this is unclear although it

was believed to have been influenced by
the Mediterranean whose origins lie in Crete
and Asia Minor.
Greek Mythology

♣ The Greek mythological gods and

goddesses were made out of their
own image very different from the
Egyptians and the others.

♣ They were believed to be the

controller of the life of human beings.
Greek Mythology

♣ Greek gods were not supreme,

almighty beings. They were looked upon
as idealized human beings. They were
powerful, but looked human and had
the same flaws human had. They were
immortal, didn’t get old or sick and had
eternal youth, but they did have human
flaws, desires and needs, such as
hunger and thirst.
Zeus (Roman name: Jupiter)
The most powerful of all,
♣ god of the sky and the king
of Olympus.
♣ His temper affected the
weather, and he threw
thunderbolts when he was
unhappy.
♣ He was married to Hera but
had many other lovers.
♣ His symbols include the oak
and the thunderbolt.
Hera (Roman name: Juno)
♣ Hera was goddess of
marriage and the queen of
Olympus.
♣ She was Zeus's wife and
sister;
many myths tell of how she
sought revenge when Zeus
betrayed her with his lovers.
♣ Her symbols include the
peacock and the cow.
Poseidon (Roman name:
Neptune)
♣ Poseidon was god of the
sea.
♣ He lived in a beautiful
palace under the sea and
caused earthquakes when he
was in a temper.
♣ His symbols include the horse
and the trident (a three-
pronged pitchfork).
Aphrodite (Roman name:
Venus)
♣ Aphrodite was the goddess
of love and beauty, and the
protector of sailors.
♣ She may have been the
daughter of Zeus and the Titan
Dione, or she may have risen
from sea foam.
♣ Her symbols include the
myrtle tree and the dove.
Apollo
♣ Apollo was the god of
music and healing.
♣ He was also an archer,
and hunted with a silver
bow. Apollo was the son of
Zeus and the Titan Leto, and
the twin of Artemis.
♣ His symbols include the
laurel tree, the crow, and
the dolphin.
Ares (Roman name: Mars)
♣ Ares was the god of war.
♣ He was both cruel and a
coward.
♣ Ares was the son of Zeus
and Hera, but neither of his
parents liked him.
♣His symbols include the
vulture and the dog, and
he often carried a bloody
spear.
Artemis (Roman name:
Diana)
♣ Artemis was the goddess of
the hunt and the protector of
women in childbirth.
♣ She hunted with silver arrows
and loved all wild animals.
♣ Artemis was the daughter of
Zeus and Leto, and the twin of
Apollo.
♣ Her symbols include the
cypress tree and the deer.
Athena (Roman name:
Minerva)
♣ Athena was the goddess
of wisdom.
♣ She was also skilled in the
art of war, and helped
heroes such as Odysseus
and Hercules.
♣ Athena sprang full-grown
from the forehead of Zeus,
and became his favorite
child.
♣ Her symbols include the
owl and the olive tree.
Hephaestus (Roman name:
Vulcan)
Hephaestus was the god of fire
and the forge (a furnace in
which metal is heated).
Although he made armor and
weapons for the gods, he loved
peace.
He was the son of Zeus and
Hera and married Aphrodite.
♣ His symbols include the anvil
and the forge.
Hermes (Roman name:
Mercury)
♣ Hermes was the messenger
god, a trickster, and a friend
to thieves.
He was said to have invented
boxing and gymnastics.
♣ He was the son of Zeus and
the constellation Maia.
♣ The speediest of all, he
wore winged sandals and a
winged hat and carried a
magic wand.a
Demeter (Roman name:
Ceres)
♣ Demeter was the
goddess of the harvest.
The word “cereal” comes
from her Roman name.
♣ She was the sister of Zeus.
♣ Her symbols include
wheat.
Hestia (Roman name: Vesta)
♣ Hestia was the goddess of
the hearth (a fireplace at the
center of the home).
♣ She was the most gentle of
the gods, and does not play
a role in many myths.
♣ Hestia was the sister of Zeus
and the oldest of the
Olympians.
♣ Fire is among her symbols.
Ancient Greek Literature

-refers to literature written in Ancient

Greek from the oldest surviving written
works in the Greek language until
approximately the fifth century AD and
the rise of the Byzantine Empire.

- arose from the proto-Indo-European

language, though roughly one-third of
its words cannot be derived from
various reconstructions of the tongue.
Ancient Greek Literature

♣ A number of alphabets and syllabifies

had been used to render Greek, but
surviving Greek literature was written in
a Phoenician-derived alphabet that
arose primarily in Greek Ionia and was
fully adopted by Athens by the fifth
century BC.
Ancient Greek Literature

♣ At the beginning of Greek literature

stand the two monumental works of
Homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey. The
other great poet of the preclassical
period was Hesiod. His two surviving works
are Works and Days and Theogony.
Ancient Greek Literature

-30% of the words in a ordinary dictionary

comes from the ancient Greek language.

Ancient Greeks were the first to use vowels.

The vowels made the language easier to
learn and speak.

- Our alphabet came from the Greek

language.
For example: the word “alphabet” came from
ancient Greek words “alpha” “beta”.
Ancient Greek Literature

Ancient Greek literature had four major writings;

epic traditions, lyric poetry, tragedy and
comedy.

An example of the epic traditions are the Iliad

and the Odyssey.

Lyric poems got its name from a group of

individuals singing while playing the lyre.

Tragedies and comedies were dramas and

used to honour Greek god Dionysus.
These are the five main dialects of ancient
Greek that have been found on inscriptions:

Attic-Ionic Greek
Achaean
Aeolic
Northwest Greek
Doric
 GREECE
ATHENS SPARTA
(MIND) (BODY)
 The way children were educated was
different in each city state.

In Sparta, reading and writing was

unimportant. Boys learned to be good
fighters.

 In Athens, citizens had to be educated to

take part in voting in the Assembly. Athenian
boys also went to 'wrestling school' each day,
to learn many sports, not just wrestling. They
had to be fit, to fight in the army.
 Schools
♣ Greek schools were small. They had only one
teacher and about ten or twenty boys. The schools
were not free and so only the rich could really afford
to send their children to school.

♣ They don’t need

much of school
equipments, as they
had learn everything
off by heart.

♣ They used a wooden pen called a stylus with a

sharp end for writing and a flat end for 'rubbing out'.
 In ancient Athens, the purpose of education
was to produce citizens
Trained in the arts, and to prepare citizens for
both peace and war.

Until age 6 or so, boys were taught at home

by their mother or by a male slave.

Books were very expensive and rare, so

subjects were read out-loud, and the boys
had to memorize everything. To help them
learn, they used writing tablets and rulers.
 Their
In primary school, they
had to learn two
important things – the
words of Homer and how
to play lyre.

Their teacher, who was always a man, could

choose what additional subjects he wanted to
teach.
He might to teach drama, public speaking,
government, art, writing, math, and how to
play another ancient Greek instrument – flute.
 Following that, boys attended a
higher school for four more years. When
they turned 18, they entered military
school for two additional years. At age
20, they graduated.

Girls – were not allowed to go to

school. They were educated in
housekeeping and how to look after
the family.
 SPARTA : EDUCATION
In Ancient Sparta, the purpose of education
was to produce a well-drilled, well-
disciplined marching army.

Spartans believe in a life of discipline, self-

denial, and simplicity. They were very loyal to
the state of Sparta. Every Spartan, male or
female, was required to have a perfect body.
 When babies were born in ancient
Sparta, Spartan soldiers would come by the
house and check the baby. If the baby did
not appear healthy and strong, the infant was
taken away, and left to die on a hillside, or
taken to be trained as a slave (a helot).

Spartan Boys
Spartan boys were sent to military school at
age 6 or 7. They lived, trained and slept in the
barracks of their brotherhood. They were
taught survival skills and other skills necessary
to be a great soldier..
Important
Authors
 HOMER

Homer is best
known for the two epic
poems the Iliad and
the Odyssey.

the Greek blind poet

Homer is a mystery. The Greek epic poet
credited with the enduring epic tales of The Iliad
and The Odyssey is an enigma insofar as actual
facts of his life go. Some scholars believe him to
be one man; others think these iconic stories
were created by a group. A variation on the
group idea stems from the fact that storytelling
was an oral tradition and Homer compiled the
stories, then recited them to memory.
 Sophocles
a Greek dramatist

Wrote 123 plays (only 7

survived)

Died in 406 B.C at

Athens
 EUCLID
His main work is The
Elements which is still used
as a textbook in
mathematics.
 PLATO
The most famous
works The Republic
and Symposium.
 Aristophanes
He was a playwright
who wrote comedies.

His notable plays,

The Wasps and
Lysistrata.
 EURIPIDES
Was a Greek tragedian.

His most known works

are Alcestis, Medea and
The Bacchus.
 Diffent Ages
Of Ancient
Greece Literature
The Homeric
Age

This age marked the creation of the

Greek epics, The Iliad and The Odyssey.
This age was preceded by unknown
literature which were mostly unwritten.
The Attic Age
♣ This is the period of the emergence of
excellent playwrights like Aeschylus, Sophocles,
Euripides, and Aristophanes.; great historians
like Herodotus and Thucydides; and
Philosophers like Plato, Aristotle,and Socrates

♣ This period was the most glorious in ancient

history that revolves around great political
leader in the person of PericlesIt is also known
as Periclean Age.
The Hellenic
Age
♣ This age began after the death of
Demosthenes in 322 B.C. The following
year just after the death of Alexander
the di8vision of his empire. The literary
prominence of Athens passed to
Alexandria, a city in Egypt founded by
Alexander. Alexandria, then became the
metropolis of the Hellenistic world.
Modern
Greek
Modern Greek
Literature
♣ Recognized as masters of modern Greek
letters, Seferis and Elytis received the Novel
Prize Literature, in 1963 and 1979, respectively.

♣ The poet Maria Polydouri (1902-30) gain

renown through her intense, erotic love lyrics.

♣ The effort of modern Greek writers to

achieve a synthesis of the rich traditions o9f
the Greek heritage is well represented in the
wok of Nikos Kazantzakis.
Modern Greek
Literature
♣ In general, 20th century Greek literature
reflects the evolution of European modernism
in such various forms as French symbolism
and surrealism or British American
experiment in narrative techniques.
♣ Symbolism appears in the work of George
Seferis and George Kostiras, surrealism in that
of Oddyseus Elytis.
 Greek
Influences
Modern Greek
Literature

Democracy: The
Greeks created the
world’s first democracy.
Athens started out as a
monarchy and then
advanced to and
oligarchy until it finally
reached a democracy.
Modern Greek
Literature
The Alphabet:
♣ The Greeks were the first civilization to use
an alphabet.
♣ The Alphabet was developed after the Dark
Age when the Greeks stopped using their
previous written language.
♣ Today many letters of our modern alphabet
originate from the Greek alphabet such as the
letters A, B, E, and O.
Modern Greek
Literature

Libraries:
The first library in the world, the library of
Alexandria was actually built in Egypt,
however Egypt was pretty much Greeks
because after Egypt submitted to
Alexander’s rule the Macedonians started
spreading the Greek way of life to all of the
lands he conquered including Egypt. A
Modern Greek
Literature
The Olympics:
The Olympic Games started in ancient
Greece. The participants were the city-
states of Ancient Greece and their
colonies. The Olympic Games were held
every 4 years in honor of Zeus, the king
god.
Modern Greek
Literature
Architecture:
We still use Greek-style architecture
today. A type of Greek Architecture that is
used today would be pillars.
♣ In Greece a building which pillars were
used would be the Parthenon located in
Athens.