Transcript The Height of Greek Civilization

The Height of
Greek Civilization
750-150 B.C.
Chapter 5
Sec. 1- The Quest for Beauty
and Meaning
• During the
mid 300’s BC
Greece
reached its
cultural peak
• This period of
cultural
achievement
is called the
“Golden Age
of Greece”
• Artists
excelled in
architecture,
sculpture,
and painting
• Pieces were
simple and
graceful, but
large
• This style is
called
“Classical”
The Parthenon- best example of
Classical architecture
It was also a temple to Athena
• Greek pottery served domestic
purposes AND artistic
purposes
• Pottery depicted scenes in
mythology and everyday life
• Greek art
emphasized
the individual
• During the Classical
period, sculptures
idealized what people
should look like
• After the wars, art
became more life like
and less grand
• Greeks also excelled in drama
and theater
• They were the first people to
write and perform plays
Aeschylus
• He was the first
great writer of
tragedies- a
story where the
lead character is
doomed to an
unhappy ending
Sophocles
• Next great writer of tragedies
• Accepted human suffering by the
hands of the gods
• Most famous work, Oedipus Rex
Euripides
• Last of the three great
tragedian
• Focused on qualities of human
beings and the tragedies that
they bring upon themselves
• Wrote about the miseries of
war
Aristophanes
• Greek then began
writing comedies, which
were plays with humorous
themes and happy endings
• He was the most famous
comedic writer, and wrote witty
social satire