Agenda Ancient Greek Civilization key characteristics What is
Greek Mythology? Greek Mythology in Modern Culture The Origin of
the Gods Creation of the World The Titans The Olympians Greek God
and Goddesses presentations
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Ancient Greek Geography Ancient Greece was a selection of
small, independent communities. These communities were cut off from
one another by the mountainous terrain of the region. Each
community was called a city-state or polis and had its own
hinterland surrounding farmland Each city state functioned as a
mini-country Government, laws, and army Although these city states
often battled one another, at times they came together for
protection against foreign enemies.
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City-States Athens was the largest and most powerful city-state
Although ancient Greece consisted of many independent city-states,
its common customs, traditions, language, ancestry, religion, and
way of life united its people into one great civilization. There
were several large Greek city-states, including: Athens Thebes
Mycenae Sparta Delphi
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What is Greek Mythology? Greek mythology is the body of myths
and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods
and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and
significance of their own practices. These stories tell important
lessons about emotional themes such as greed, lust and honour. Each
god or goddess ruled over certain areas of the Greeks lives and
gave them a sense of shared identity.
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Why Should We Study Greek Mythology? The Ancient Greek culture
has been kept alive by the oral and later written stories handed
down through thousands of years. Modern plays, novels, television
programs, movies and even advertisements refer to Greek gods,
goddesses, heroes and their stories. Adventurous and exciting
stories delight and entertain us.
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Greek Mythology in Modern Culture Can you name some expressions
people use today that have their origins in Greek mythology? Trojan
Horse Herculean effort Achilles Heel Opening a Pandoras Box Olympic
Proportions Midas touch Titanic
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The Beginnings of Greek Mythology 1. The First Beings 2. The
Creation of Monsters and Titans 3. The Titans vs. The Olympians 4.
The Parthenon of Greek Gods and Goddesses
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The First Beings The Greek myths start by trying to answer the
question, How did we get here? The story is that the world began
with a great darkness, called Chaos. Out of this darkness came
Gaia, the Earth, and Uranus, the heavens. The offspring of Gaia and
Uranus were giant gods called the Titans.
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The Creation of Monsters and Titans The coupling of Gaia and
Uranus produces the one-eyed Cyclops race and other monsters, as
well as the twelve Titans. The youngest and most powerful of the
Titans was Cronus. Cronus hated his father and, with his mothers
encouragement, overthrew his father to become ruler of the
universe. In time, Cronus feared that his own children would rebel
against him, so each time his wife Rhea gave birth, Cronus ate the
child. At one point, Rhea tricked Cronus by giving him a stone to
eat while she hid the baby Zeus.
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The Titans vs. the Olympians When Zeus was older, he gave his
father a drugged drink which caused Cronus to vomit up Zeuss
brothers and sisters. In the war that followed, Zeus and his
siblings defeated the Titans. Zeus and his siblings were called the
Olympian gods because they were believed to live on Mount Olympus.
The brothers Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades drew lots to determine who
will rule.
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The Olympian Gods The Olympians are a group of 12 gods that
ruled after the overthrow of the Titans. The ancient Greeks built
great temples and sanctuaries to their gods. They held festivals in
their honour, with processions, sports, sacrifices and
competitions. The importance of staying on the gods good side is
emphasized in the Illiad and the Odyssey The main characters in
both poems, Hector, Agamemnon, all believe that glory gained in
battle is the greatest good.
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