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1600 BCE
What Makes the Greeks so Memorable: Summary
Developments in language, literature, and drama allowed the memory of the Greeks to make it this far into the future and has undoubtedly influenced countless things in today’s world. Their development in philosophy and concepts about humans made people look at & live life in new ways. Rulers started (occasionally) treating the people they conquered as humans as well, and the developments in politics lead to more equal social systems and even forms of public services! -
800 BCE
Development of the Greek Syllabic Alphabet
While the Greeks had a form of alphabet before this, we have still yet to decipher anything written in it to this day. With this new, syllabic alphabet, learning to write was much easier and they were able to keep track of everything (history, drama, math, philosophy, etc.) and we are able to translate it. This has allowed us to have a much deeper understanding of them, their culture, their views and values, and much more. -
799 BCE
Creation of Poleis
The Greek poleis were the first experiment in democracy. Citizens were only allowed to be a member of one polis at a time, and they were expected to take part in voting on officials and laws. People were all supposed to be equal before the law, regardless of class. While it obviously wasn't representative of anyone but white, older men, it was a start. Especially since we take democracy very seriously, this is a fantastic development. -
638 BCE
Solon of Athens
Solon did many things that make him the kind of great ruler we remember Greece for: he canceled debts, eliminated debt-slavery, bought and brought home Athenians who had been enslaved, reduced the power of the aristocracy, wrote down the laws in a public space so they couldn't be misrepresented, and created the idea of politicians coming & going while laws stayed the same. He created a much more equal political system for Athens. -
600 BCE
Drama
Greek drama has undoubtedly had an affect on plays, TV shows, movies, and so much more in the current day. History is great for knowing what happened when, but drama gives us a view into the minds of the Greek citizens. What did they find important, funny, or sad to write about? It has influenced us greatly and gives us a better, deeper understanding of the time. -
Period: 510 BCE to 323 BCE
The Idea of Humanism
In early human development, it was common to see belief systems in which humans are only on the earth to suffer, pay tribute to the gods, or prevent evil from winning an eternal war. Humanism is a development in Greece that we still hold dear today. Humans are inherently beautiful and creative. This is a theme in their literature, drama, art, and more. And it surely affected how they lived their day to day lives. -
469 BCE
Socrates
Socrates was arguably the first, great Greek philosopher. He explained that there were explicit truths about morality and ethics, and these answers could be reached by a method of continuous questioning we now call the Socratic method. He tried to teach that there were more important things than money and power. He also taught the next great thinker: Plato. Overall, his contributions to Greece and the world in general are large and long lasting. -
460 BCE
Pericles of Athens
Pericles is known for creating the most fair and impartial government of the time, even if it was done while taking advantage of their allies. He started the practice of paying public servants, reducing the potential for bribes & corruption. He also unfortunately decided that only children of Athenian parents could gain citizenship, but it allowed Athenians to continue to be proud of their citizenship. Athens itself enjoyed great prosperity during his rule. -
336 BCE
Alexander the Great
Alexander's greed and courage allowed Greek culture to spread over a massive area of land. Even though they were conquered by him, a lot of Greek subjects came to love him because of how great of a leader he was. He defeated and took over Persia and captured Egypt. He treated the people he conquered well, letting them keep their religion, language, social hierarchy, and more, simply replacing their rulers with Greeks and Macedonians. He brought great wealth and prosperity to Greece. -
283 BCE
The Library of Alexandria
The Library of Alexandria was the first collection of knowledge of it's scale. Countless scholars went there to study and learn. Unfortunately, it was lost. But, even though it was only around for a short time, there were still plenty of people who had an opportunity to learn from it. The amount of progress it spurred is likely much larger than we know, and it is the perfect symbol of what ancient Greece was capable of when it had a great ruler. -
281 BCE
Seleucus
When Alexander died, there was a fight that lead to 3 people ruling different parts of his land. Seleucus in particular is interesting because he seemingly took a page from Alexander's book on getting people to like him, and he took it to an extreme. He invented public service! There were publicly funded education, garbage collection, poor relief, and free food. Even if it was done to prevent uprisings, it is still a great, early example of helping the poor to better society as a whole.
