Greek+Literature

Greek Literature Who were the greatest of the great people in the world who contributed to the workings of such a powerful subject? Modern literature today has been founded on what has been told, and taught through these front-runners of Greek literature. The impact they have is massive, and is a shame that they are not appreciated and studied in a more respected way.
 * Greek literature ** is the founding father of poetry, stories, history, and philosophy.

// For starters // ~ d Definition of __Literature__: writings in which expression and form, in connection with ideas of permanent and universal interest, are characteristic or essential features, as poetry, novels, history, biography, and essays d The years of Greek literature excellence was between the years of 700 B.C. to 300 B.C.  d  The major writers of the times are broken into most famous sections:

Very little is known about ** Homer **, other than the work he created. It is said that his name comes from the word "homeros", which means, "hostage" or other words, “he who is forced to follow". Many scholars that have studied him have come to the conclusion that his name derived from that fact that he was blind. He was the first to use a poetic “meter” in his books, which is known as a type of rhythm and beat which is followed by breaks in the words. This knew style of writing was later called dactylic hexameter.
 * The Epic ** : 700 B. C. Homer wrote the “Iliad” and the “Odyssey”

The Iliad was the Ancient Greek “bible”. It had stories in it of villains and heroes, talking about adventures, and how the gods and goddess came to be. Some of the most famous stories were about The Trojan War; wars between two cities over the infamous lovely Helen. Another was about the great and unstoppable Achilles. His weakest point was his heel, because that was where his mother held him when she dipped him in the enchanted river.

The Odyssey was the sequel to the Iliad. Its story line is different, with more complex plots and different characters. It was written into 24 books, with some critics saying that someone else wrote the last few hundred pages. These charges were never proven, therefore must still be assumed that Homer wrote them.

600 B.C. Sappho (woman) has the only surviving literature by a woman in Ancient Greece
 * The Poem ** : 700 B.C. Hesiod wrote “Theogony” and “Works and Days”


 * Hesiod ** wrote poems that questioned life, and existence, as well as be the first to write down the truths that the common people normally did not read. This was portrayed through one of his poems that were 800 versus long called “Works and Days”. It spoke about Man and how he must work to survive. His other most famous piece of work was “Theogony”, which was written about the beginnings of Earth and the gods.


 * Sappho ** was the only Greek woman to write poetry that was saved throughout history. Many admired her work, as it reflected much on her life. It is said that her inspiration came from her “sweet mother” when she was still alive. She expressed different type of poem than other writers, writing about the same-sex falling in love. Her name, and the island where she was born on (Lesbos) were the building words for “lesbian”.

425 B.C. Oldest written comedy by Aristophanes
 * The Play ** : 500 B.C. Oldest written tragedies by Aeschylus


 * Aeschylus ** is the father of tragedy. He has written over 80 plays, and yet only three or four have lasted through the modern day. Historians are very grateful or his plays because they can be a replica of actual events. One of Aeschylus’s playwrights called “The Persians” is a great source of knowing generally what happened when the Persians invaded Greece. He lived just north of Athens, participating in the Battle of Marathon, and then again in the Battle of Salamis.

400 B.C. Peloponnesian Wars written by Thucydides
 * Aristophanes ** lived in Athens where he became a renowned comedy writer. He wrote many plays to win awards and competitions, and only a few were for pleasure. He often wrote his plays to pinpoint a certain person to mock their role in government and social power. His most favorite of people was Cleon, and Socrates. He was a realistic writer, creating a tone that would be known later on as iambic hexameter (similar to that of Shakespeare). His plays became extremely complex, and with that created many different branches of theatre, as well as how to master it.
 * The History ** : 450 B.C. Herodotus wrote about the Persian War


 * Herodotus ** to historians is GOD. He was the first to record actual events in detail. They were not about the present day, but most famously about the Persian War. He was the first to write in more of a textbook scenario, rather than a poem or story. He himself is probably the first historian of the ancient times. Of course he wrote the wars from his point of view, which for other people got him the nickname of “Father of Lies.” This name has never left history, and still carries itself to the present day. Luckily for him though, technology and historians have been able to depict actual scenes from these battles, which further agrees with what Herodotus had originally wrote about.


 * Thucydides ** was another historian that wrote about another famous war, The Peloponnesian War. He grew up in Athens, and fought against the Spartans, until he was exiled from the city. It is said that because of this, he was able to look on to the war from both sides. In turn, this allowed him to be a “realistic” writer, as well as more agreeable. His writings were divided into eight books, all containing vast details of the war. It also included speeches that he had heard, as well as some of his own that he thought should have been announced to the public at the time. Compared to Herodotus, Thucydides was much more respected, and read.

380 B.C. Plato and his student Aristotle recorded books of two or more people having a conversation
 * Philosophy ** : 399 B.C. Socrates is killed (poisoned) as punishment


 * Socrates ** was the original of the originals. He was the man who came to question and dig deeper into the meaning of life, and government. He was commonly named the “gadfly” because he was always around pestering people. Unfortunately, he did not write down any books specifically, just notes, and preached to the public. He was put under trial in Athens for numerous reasons; one of the being that he often praised the Spartan regime for their honor and religious obedience. Socrates did contribute a new way of thinking, to the ancient world, which carried over into today. It is called the Socratic method, which is a series of questions that would create more in depth knowledge about the certain subject.


 * Plato ** was the genius of the trio. He was Socrates most well respected student. Plato also was the one to record all of Socrates teachings and thoughts on certain subjects. He was the first, to record books that consisted of two or more people having a deep conversation. He founded the Academy, as well as preached his philosophical beliefs over the unjust death of Socrates. He had a pupil, which admired his work, soon to be known as Aristotle.


 * Aristotle ** was more into the sciences, and how they came to be. Much of it was intertwined with government, physics, and biology. He was the teacher of the Alexander the Great, proving that Aristotle’s education and knowledge was beyond larger than any normal scholar in Greece. He and Plato worked together in creating books that would enhance philosophy throughout Athens, and all of Greece.