Differences in Geo

1. -Direct Democracy: Form of government that is still widely used today. -Tragedy: One of the forms of Grecian entertainment, led to modern tragedies (Shakespeare). -Comedy: Showed the freedom and openness of public discussion, Athenians could take criticism. -Peloponnesian War: Led to Athens losing its empire, power, and wealth. -Philosopher: Helped to find out the truth about the universe and led to many important discoveries. -Socrates: His belief that absolute standards existed for truth and justice forced people to think about their values and actions. -Plato: His philosophic writing dominated thought in Europe for almost 1500 years. -Aristotle: His discoveries provide the basics of the scientific method used today. 2. I think Pericles goal to strengthen Athenian democracy had the greatest impact on the modern world because this goal led to direct democracy. Direct democracy is the same legal system many countries use today to elect politicians. The people are able to v...

Today in class we took the first test of the semester. The test was on what we had learned so far about Ancient Greece. In order to study for the test, last night I wrote a blog reviewing everything we learned so I could see the information again. This strategy definitely helped me to feel confident about and do well on the test. I felt very confident on almost all of the questions. However, I probably should've studied oligarchies and aristocracies more because I wasn't as confident on questions containing information about these. I also should have memorized time periods because there were two questions with them that I was confused on. Aside from these topic, I felt very good about the test and I feel like I got a good grade. I was also the first person to finish and I was able to get some homework done, including my blog.

Review on Ancient Greece Civilizations and Rivers: Mesopotamia river- Tigris and Euphrates India river- Indus China river- Huang He Egypt river- Nile Grecian Geography: -located on a mountainous peninsula -mountains cover 3/4 of Greece -about 2000 islands in the Ionian and Aegean seas -Due to being surrounded by water, there were many skilled ship builders and sailors so that food could be collected -small, independent communities called city-states were created, these were what the Greeks were loyal to -only 20% of land was arable (suitable for farming) -Greek Diet contained: grains, grapes, olives, and fish Mycenaeans, Dorians, Minoans -Mycenae was protected by a 20-ft thick wall, located on Peloponnesus -In 1400 BCE Mycenaeans invaded Crete and absorbed the Minoan culture (their writing system, language, art, religion, etc.) this is called cultural diffusion -Eventually, the "sea people  invaded Mycenae, leading to the Dorians moving into the Mycenaean area...

Grecian Tyrants Hippias -ruled from 527-510 BCE -very paranoid ruler due to his brother's murder -eventually ostracized due to his harsh ways of ruling -to get revenge on those who ostracized him, Hippies worked with the King Darius I of Persia and helped him invade Marathon Isagoras and Cleisthenes -both were aristocrats and were engaged in a power struggle            -Isagoras had support from some fellow aristocrats and from Sparta            -Cleisthenes had support from the majority of Athens Isagoras -wins against Cleisthenes and becomes tyrant -ostracuzes Cleisthenes during his rule, causing his supporters and the ordinary Athenian citizens to revolt against him -revolting citizens trapped Isagoras on the acropolis for two days, on the third day he fled and was banished from Athens. Democracy begins in 508 BCE with Cleisthenes -Cleisthenes was a member of the elite and was a very rich ruler -crafty pol...

Direct democracy- a form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives. Classical art- Art with values of harmony, order, balance, and proportion. Tragedy- A serious drama about common themes such as love, hate, war, or betrayal. Comedy- A play containing scenes filled with slapstick situations and crude humor; often made fun of politics and respected people and ideas. Peloponnesian War- War which ended in a truce between Sparta and Athens. Athens began the war with a stronger navy and Sparta with a stronger army. Philosophers- "lovers of wisdom" who seek the truth. Socrates- Philosopher who believed that absolute standards existed for truth and justice, he encouraged people to question themselves but was later put to death for his ideas. Plato- Student of Socrates who wrote The Republic which set forth his vision of a perfectly governed society where all citizens fell into 3 classes, farmers and artisans, warriors, and the ruling class....

Greek Laws and Government Government terms: -Polis: political unit made up of a city and the surrounding countryside; root word for politics, polls, policy, etc. Oligarchy: Wealthy groups dissatisfied with aristocratic rule who seized power usually with military help. Aristocracy: Government ruled by a small group of noble, landowning families. Monarchy: A single king was the ruler. Tyrant: Powerful people who seized control of the aristocracy with help from hoplites (well armed soldiers). Aristocracy -main form of government during the 6th and 7th centuries -Attended meetings called symposiums in order to discuss politics -Symposiums had many forms of entertainment such as acrobats, wine, poetry, dance performances, and hetaeras Strict Government Qualifications -Women, the middle class, and slaves were excluded from politics -Some aristocrats could even be excluded if they didn't have good connections or weren't favored by the people -The exclusion of aristocrat...

Greek Storytelling Back in Ancient Greece, Mycenaeans were invaded and the Dorians moved into their territory. During the the rule of the Dorians, much of ancient Greece's culture was lost. For example, the art of Greek writing was lost for 400 years. However, Greek stories were not completely lost. During the "Greek Dark Ages" lived a story teller named Homer. He wandered all over Greece and told many people all about ancient stories, orally. For example, Homer would tell two stories. One about Mycenaean conquests (the Iliad), and one about Odysseus and his attempt to return home after war, but Poseidon continually stopped him and tried to tempt him with bad things throughout his journey. Some Greek stories were also created due to battles in Greece such as the Trojan War. There were stories created during the war which contained gods and goddesses. For example, during the war, Aphrodite was said to make Helen fall in love with Paris when she was married and she moved ...

Today in class, we had a review day where Mr. Schick allowed for the students to teach the class about Greece. We went over the powerpoint from yesterday again in order to make sure we knew the material well and prepare for a future quiz on the geography and culture of Ancient Greece. We had three students come up and teach the class. Trevor, Connor, and Matteo were the students. He first called on Trevor who went over the first three slides which included civilizations with rivers, and the topography of Ancient Greece. Next, Trevor called on Connor who went over the majority of the powerpoint and all of Greece's mountains, city-states, and bodies of water. Finally, Matteo went over the last few slides of the powerpoint that we'd already went through previously. These slides covered the effect of the land on the Greek culture. The students all had funny and engaging lessons and it was definitely a fun day in class. Helping the 'teachers' answer questions they didn't...

All great civilizations were located on water such as: Mesopotamia- settled along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Egypt- Settled along the Nile River. India- Settled along the Indus River China- Settled along the Huang He River Identify these places on a map of Ancient Greece: Aegean Sea: The sea between Asia Minor and Greece, east of Greece. Ionian Sea: The sea that is directly west of Greece and Delphi. Adriatic Sea: North of the Ionian Sea Peloponnesus: Large chunk of land south of Greece and north of Sparta and Crete. Athens: Located on the Tip of Greece, south of the Aegean Sea and Thebes. Sparta: Close to the tip of Peloponnesus, south of Gulf of Corinth. Crete: Large island to the south/ southeast of Greece Asia Minor: Large piece of land east of Greece on the other side of the Aegean Sea. Macedonia: North of Greece and right above Mt. Olympus, large piece of land. What Bodies of Water surround Greece?: Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Sea of Crete, Ad...

Polis- Another name for city-states; fundamental political unit; made up of a city and its surrounding countryside. Acropolis- A fortified hill top. Monarchy- A single king rules an area of land. Aristocracy- Government ruled by a small group of noble, landowning families. Oligarchy- A government ruled by a few powerful people. Tyrants- Powerful people who seized control of the government by appealing to common people. Democracy- Rule by the people. Helots- Peasants forced to stay on the land they worked. Persian Wars- War between Greece and the Persian Empire which Bega. in Ionia on the coast of Anatolia. Phalanx- Foot soldiers of Greek army stood side by side, each holding a spear in one hand and a shield in the other, became the most powerful fighting force in the ancient world. Main Idea- The growth of city-states in Greece led to the development of several political systems, including the idea of democracy -Many greek government ideas have been implemented into modern ...

Mycenaean- Some of those who settled around the Greek mainland. Their interactions with other cultures and discoveries led to advancements in Greek life, such as them learning the value of seaborne trade. Trojan War- This ten year long war was one of the last Mycenaean battle campaigns, and assisted in the Mycenaean's demise. Dorians- Less advanced generation of Greeks, their age led to the temporary loss of the art of Greek writing. Homer- This was the greatest story teller to exist, his stories allowed for the Greeks to learn about history verbally during an age with a lack of writing. Epic-These stories were used in Greek time to tell stories of Greek culture and history so that it could be conveyed to the Greeks, in modern days, we can use the epics to learn more about Ancient Greece and what happened during this time period. Myth- Used by ancient greeks to help them understand the mysteries of nature, and the power of human passions, they were also used to create stories ...

Cultures of the Mountains and Sea Main Idea- roots of Greek culture are based on interaction of the Mycenaean, Minoan, and Dorian Cultures Why it matters- The seeds of much of western cultural heritage were planted during this time Geography: -contained a huge peninsula jutting out into the mediterranean sea -included 2000 islands in the Aegean and Ionian seas with included lands on the eastern edge of the Aegean sea The Sea: -The Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and Black Sea were important transportation routes which connected the Greeks to other societies and allowed for trade for needed resources The Land: -Mountain chains ran from northwest to southeast along the Balkan Peninsula -Mountains divided the land into many different regions which led to independent governments -Land transportation was difficult due to uneven terrain -Most of the land was stony and very little was fertile (about 1/4) -Little farmland and fresh water led to small populations The Climate: -had modera...

Egyptians were one of the first civilizations to create a written language. This language consisted of small pictures and it was called hieroglyphics, different symbols represented different ideas and later even represented sounds and letters. Hieroglyphics were deciphered mainly due to the Rosetta Stone. This stone contained hieroglyphics, simplified hieroglyphics, and Greek which was used in order to crack the code. After many years of deciphering, Jean Francois Champollion broke it in 1822. The Egyptian script was usually written on mashed Nile reeds which were made into a paper like substance called papyrus. Papyrus was stored in scrolls which were the books of ancient Egypt. Egyptians were also successful in creating many other inventions such as a calendar with 12 months and 365 days to make sense of the seasonal cycles, potions and cures for many common illnesses, and wooden sailboats to allow for easier travel along the Nile. Finally, Egyptians had enough resources and economic...

Egypt consisted of Upper and Lower Egypt, both being close to the Nile River. Upper Egypt was a 500 mile long strip of Fertile land along the Nile and Lower was the wide land of the Nile delta, emptying into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile was the major provider of life for the Egyptians and it was so important to their culture that there are many lores and writings about the Nile. However, originally these two parts of Egypt were separated and later connected by a pharaoh called Narmer or Menes. In ancient Egypt, Pharaohs were all powerful, worshipped as Gods, and even connected to the other Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. Pharaohs also had multiple wives and all social and financial success was through the palace/the pharaoh. Some women were pharaohs, too, but only few became this high level of power. Women did have power however, they could inherit land and they could also divorce their husbands if they felt the need to. Egyptians also had a very specific culture when it came to belief...

                                    The Importance of The Nile In Egyptian Culture The Nile River is the longest in the world (4,100 miles long) and it flows from the East African Highlands to the Mediterranean Sea. This river allowed for Egyptian civilizations to be created, and stay thriving for many years. The river flooded every July, leaving behind silt that could be used for wheat and barley growth. In an area full of dryness and desert, this silt was very valuable and sustainable enough for settlements to be created along the river. The Nile's floods provided the main source of food for the Egyptians and if anything went wrong with the floods such as them being too low, thousands could starve due to the significantly lower amount of crops. Aside from a food source, the Nile River was also one of the main sources of travel for the Egyptians. The Egyptians were able to travel between Upper Eg...