HIS 101
Unit 4: Classical Greece
A
slightly
different view of the Parthenon, showing the ongoing reconstruction
efforts. The Parthenon was the Greek temple built to honor the
goddess Athena, patron of the city of Athens, on the Acropolis
overlooking the city.
As you can see from this photo, there is really not that much that
survives from the once fabulous
temple. The roof and most of the interior were lost in 1687
when a Turkish ammunition dump inside the building exploded during an attack
by Venetian forces. Then in the late nineteenth century, Lord
Elgin removed most of the remaining sculptural friezes and took them
back to England where they were (and still are) displayed in the British Museum, a
surviving remnant of British imperialism.
Construction of the Parthenon began in 447 bce on the
initiative of Pericles, the great leader of classical Athens, who wanted to remake Athens into a glorious
city. Over the centuries, the Parthenon has also served as a
Christian church and an Islamic
mosque.
What you
must do in this unit
What you can do in this unit
- Listen to some further information about this unit
as a mp3 file. You can also read the information as
a txt file. There is also information about the Ancient Hebrews, mp3 file or txt.
- Read the remarks by Professor Blois about the fires that swept through Greece and threatened Athens in the summer of 2009.
Some videos that you can watch for this unit
Extra Credit Options
- Take the short 5-point quizzes for chapters 3 and 4. Log into Blackboard and look under "Chapter Quizzes." You have five minutes to complete each quiz (multiple-choice questions).
- Read Plato's Allegory of the Cave and write a one-page paper (In your own words explain the
allegory and indicate why it is important.) for a maximum of 50 points.
- Read the documents
associated with the
Trial of Socrates,
including Plato's Apology. In a one-page
paper (maybe two pages), note and explain the main points of Socrates' defense
for a maximum of 50 points.
- You may choose to do an optional, extra credit assignment
on the Melian Dialogue (also at www.shsu.edu/~his_ncp/Melian.html (a long paragraph worth a
maximum of 25 points). In the "Dialogue," the Ancient Greek historian
Thucydides reconstructed the negotiations that took place between the
Athenians, who wanted to annex the island city-state of Melos, and the
Melians, who wished to remain neutral and not get involved in the
war between Athens and Sparta. In 416 bce, after discussions failed to
reach an agreement, the Athenians
invaded Melos and enslaved the inhabitants of the island. The representatives of
Melos argued for neutrality; Athens asserted that neutrality was just not good enough and
that Athens had a right, and duty, to assert its power. Sound familiar? The
"Melian Dialogue" remains a stunning example of how stronger
nations/countries/societies manipulate ideas of
justice and natural rights to achieve their own political ends. In
a one-page paper, assess the relevance of some of the issues touched on in
the "Dialogue" to recent (last 25 years) international politics.
- You may also choose to do an optional, extra credit assignment
on Thucydides (long paragraph worth a
maximum of 25 points).
- Read some of Aristotle's comments on democracy
(from his Politics), and for a maximum of 25 points extra credit,
summarize his views on democracy and the polis in a long paragraph.
- For extra credit, please suggest a
relevant website for this unit of the course. Send the title of the site, the url and a
brief explanation why you find the information interesting and applicable to
the material being studied this unit.
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