Greek Society was mainly broken up between Free people and Slaves, who were owned by the free people. Slaves were used as servants and labourers, without any legal rights. Sometimes the slaves were prisoners of war or bought from foreign slave traders. Although many slaves lived closely with their owners, few were skilled craftsmen and even fewer were paid.
As Athenian society evolved, free men were divided between Citizens and Metics. A citizen was born with Athenian parents and were the most powerful group, that could take part in the government of the Polis. After compulsory service in the army they were expected to be government officials and take part in Jury Service. A metic was of foreign birth that had migrated to Athens, to either trade or practice a craft. A metic had to pay taxes and sometimes required to serve in the army. However, they could never achieve full right s of a Citizen, neither could they own houses or land and were not allowed to speak in law courts.
The social classes applied to men only, as women all took their social and legal status from their husband or their male partner. Women in ancient Greece were not permitted to take part in public life.
As Athenian society evolved, free men were divided between Citizens and Metics. A citizen was born with Athenian parents and were the most powerful group, that could take part in the government of the Polis. After compulsory service in the army they were expected to be government officials and take part in Jury Service. A metic was of foreign birth that had migrated to Athens, to either trade or practice a craft. A metic had to pay taxes and sometimes required to serve in the army. However, they could never achieve full right s of a Citizen, neither could they own houses or land and were not allowed to speak in law courts.
The social classes applied to men only, as women all took their social and legal status from their husband or their male partner. Women in ancient Greece were not permitted to take part in public life.
Relationship Between Greeks and Their Gods and Goddesses
It may seem that the Greek gods act capriciously, frivolously, and even immorally, that they are not particularly heroic, and that they lack the religious seriousness we might expect from a god. All of this is true, but it is also not the complete picture of the Greek gods. For the Greeks did not always think of their gods in the same way many Americans think of God. In the usual Judeo-Christian way of thinking, God is all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful, and is the source of moral goodness. The Greek gods were much more insightful, knowledgeable, and powerful than humans, but not infinitely so. Their most distinctive quality is not goodness, but power: "The distinguishing quality of the Greek gods is, above everything, power" (Bowra 58). Power defines a god: "A Greek god is a power that represents a type of action, a kind of force" (Vernant 273). Thus Aphrodite is the force of love and lust; Zeus is the power of the thunderbolt and of kingship; Ares is the power of battle run amok, and so on.
Greek Mythology in Modern Culture
Daily we come across words, city names, companies, literary allusions, movies, as well as many planets and constellations, that take their name or borrow their theme from Greek mythology.
Here is a movie based of the fantastic tales of Cerberus, the three headed dog of the underworld.Emmanuelle Vaugier, Sebastian Spence and Brent Florenece star in this surprisingly good film which blends action, adventure, horror and fantasy competently. The premise is simple, Vaugier's Dr. Samantha Gaines is a leading historian and is forced into helping a villainous collector find the sword of Attila the Hun which would grant him even more power. Gaines is forced to help the villain as he has kidnapped her brother, Zach, played by Brent Florence. Gaines is helped by Jake Adams (the handsome Sebastian Spence) and his fellow adventurers, who also delve out most of the comic relief in the film. Naturally, the heroes - and the villains - eventually come across the legendary Cerebus, the three headed dog that guards Attila the Hun's tomb. From then on in, the heroes have to deal with stopping the villain and staying alive as Cerebus is hot on their tracks.
Here is a movie based of the fantastic tales of Cerberus, the three headed dog of the underworld.Emmanuelle Vaugier, Sebastian Spence and Brent Florenece star in this surprisingly good film which blends action, adventure, horror and fantasy competently. The premise is simple, Vaugier's Dr. Samantha Gaines is a leading historian and is forced into helping a villainous collector find the sword of Attila the Hun which would grant him even more power. Gaines is forced to help the villain as he has kidnapped her brother, Zach, played by Brent Florence. Gaines is helped by Jake Adams (the handsome Sebastian Spence) and his fellow adventurers, who also delve out most of the comic relief in the film. Naturally, the heroes - and the villains - eventually come across the legendary Cerebus, the three headed dog that guards Attila the Hun's tomb. From then on in, the heroes have to deal with stopping the villain and staying alive as Cerebus is hot on their tracks.
The Iliad
Nine years after the start of the Trojan War, the Greek (“Achaean”) army sacks Chryse, which is a town allied with Troy. During the battle, the Achaeans captures a pair of beautiful maidens, Chryseis and Briseis. Agamemnon, the leader of the Achaean forces, takes Chryseis as his prize, and Achilles, the Achaeans’ greatest warrior, claims Briseis. Chryseis’s father, Chryses, who serves as a priest of the god Apollo, offers an enormous ransom in return for his daughter, but Agamemnon refuses to give Chryseis back. Chryses then prays to Apollo, who sends a plague upon the Achaean camp.
After the death of many Achaeans, Agamemnon goes to the prophet Calchas to uncover the cause of the plague. When he learns that Chryseis had sent it, he gives her up but then demands Briseis from Achilles in return. Furious at this insult, Achilles returns to his tent in the army camp and refuses to fight in the war any longer. He yearns to see the Achaeans destroyed and asks his mother, the sea-nymph Thetis, to enlist the services of Zeus toward this end. The Trojan and Achaean sides have declared a cease-fire with each other, but when the Trojans breach the treaty, Zeus comes to their aid.
Several days of conflict ensue, including battles between Paris and Menelaus and Hector and Ajax. The Achaeans make no progress. The Trojans push the Achaeans back, forcing them to seek refuge behind their ships. The Achaeans begin to hope for the future when a nighttime reconnaissance mission by Diomedes and Odysseus yields information about the Trojans’ plans, but the next day brings disaster. Several Achaean commanders become wounded, and the Trojans break through the Achaean ramparts. They advance all the way up to the boundary of the Achaean camp and set fire to one of the ships. Defeat seems imminent, because without the ships, the army will be stranded at Troy and almost certainly destroyed.
Achilles then agrees to a plan proposed by Nestor that will allow his beloved friend Patroclus to take his place in battle. Patroclus is a good warrior, and his presence on the battlefield helps the Achaeans push the Trojans away from the ships. But the counterattack fails. Apollo knocks Patroclus’s armor to the ground, and he is slayed by Hector. Hector ends up with the armor, but the Achaeans manage to bring the body back to their camp because of Menelaus. When Achilles discovers that Hector has killed Patroclus, he agrees to reconcile with Agamemnon and rejoin the battle. Thetis goes to Mount Olympus and persuades the god Hephaestus to fcreate a new suit of armor for Achilles. Achilles then rides out to battle at the head of the Achaean army.
Meanwhile, Hector has ordered his men to camp outside the walls of Troy. But when the Trojan army glimpses Achilles, it flees in terror back behind the city walls. Achilles kills every Trojan he sees. Strengthened by his rage, he even fights the god of the river Xanthus. Finally, Achilles confronts Hector outside the walls of Troy. Hector refuses to flee inside the city with them. Achilles chases him around the city’s periphery three times, then the goddess Athena tricks Hector into turning around and fighting Achilles. Achilles kills Hector. He then takes the body to the back of his chariot, dragging it across the battlefield to the Achaean camp. The triumphant Achaeans celebrate Patroclus’s funeral with a long series of athletic games in his honor. (what has become the Olympics) Each day for the next nine days, Achilles drags Hector’s body in circles around Patroclus’s funeral bier. At last, the gods agree that Hector deserves a proper burial. Both sides agree to a temporary truce, and Hector receives a hero’s funeral.
Principle Characters
The Greeks:
-Helen: daughter of Zeus and goddess of Nemesis. She is abducted by Paris and taken to Troy
-Odysseus: King of Ithaca
-Menelaus: King of Sparta and husband of Helen
The Trojans:
-Hector: Brother of Paris and greatest Trojan warrior
-Paris: Son of Priam and Hecuba and abductor of Helen
-Aeneas: Son of Aphrodite and Anchises
The Olympic Origins
According to historical records, the first ancient Olympic Games can be traced back to 776 BC. They were dedicated to the Olympian gods and were staged on the ancient plains of Olympia. They continued for nearly 12 centuries, until Emperor Theodosius decreed in 393 A.D. that all such "pagan cults" be banned.
The Olympic Games were closely linked to the religious festivals of the cult of Zeus, but were not an integral part of a rite. Indeed, they had a secular character and aimed to show the physical qualities and evolution of the performances accomplished by young people, as well as encouraging good relations between the cities of Greece. According to specialists, the Olympic Games owed their purity and importance to religion.
The official award ceremony would take place on the last day of the Games, at the elevated vestibule of the temple of Zeus. In a loud voice, the herald would announce the name of the Olympic winner, his father's name, and his homeland. Then, the Hellanodikis placed the sacred olive tree wreath, or kotinos, on the winner's head.
The Olympic Games were closely linked to the religious festivals of the cult of Zeus, but were not an integral part of a rite. Indeed, they had a secular character and aimed to show the physical qualities and evolution of the performances accomplished by young people, as well as encouraging good relations between the cities of Greece. According to specialists, the Olympic Games owed their purity and importance to religion.
The official award ceremony would take place on the last day of the Games, at the elevated vestibule of the temple of Zeus. In a loud voice, the herald would announce the name of the Olympic winner, his father's name, and his homeland. Then, the Hellanodikis placed the sacred olive tree wreath, or kotinos, on the winner's head.