Greek Material Culture

In ancient Greece, there was one dominant city-state, or Polis as the ancient Greeks called it, and this was Athens. It was a beautiful society that enjoyed art and literature very much and valued things like wholeness and excellence. However, one thing the Athenians did not value was women. They were deemed inferior by men, and treated more as a decoration rather than a human being.

Ancient Greeks were heavily invested in religion and thought that once they perished into the afterlife that the many gods and goddesses would take care of them. Their religion and belief system is fascinating solely on the informative-illustrations onto their pottery wares. Yet, they were just as complex in thought as the Han dynasty-era with narrative or religion roles. The ancient Greeks did not just used vase vessels as tomb markers or status in the afterlife but to be demonstrated for special collections or used in privately for occasions.

In lassical Greece is where is born the ideal of beauty which has lasted until today. Greek art, especially sculpture, focused on finding a barrel of perfect proportions for the human body. On this occasion, and initially, the models for the art would be male (young athletes), and only they could be shown in full nudity. Thus, in the case of female, their representations would appear devoid of their femininity and sex characteristics, resulting in robust and masculinizadas figures. However, from the fifth century, when Athens lived their greatest splendor, there would be an important evolution of forms and a change in the concept of what is beautiful. The myth of Aphrodite under the attribute of goddess of beauty, pleasure, and love.

The Greeks, as other civilizations, used art to portray each stage their society was going through at certain periods of time. So, how did the ancient greeks portrayed gender roles and social statutes through art? I will prove that through the development of art, the ancient greeks, in specific the Minoans demonstrated the social status and gender roles of their inhabitants, as well as the beginning of the creation of their history.

Kings of the Hellenistic era built temples, staffed with priest, for old gods. This way they spread Greek religious beliefs throughout the Near East. This broadened peoples span of knowledge of religions, science and philosophy and shaped the world. When people got tired of it and found rituals unsatisfying, they turned to mystery religions.

Greek artists showed value for the individual. All people were portrayed in Greek art, from the sagging old woman to the ideal athlete. Although early Greek art focused on the human ideal, their later art shows that the Greeks appreciated all forms, and found the human body in general to be a beautiful thing. Even the gods in Greek art showed how highly the Greeks valued humanity. The gods were depicted as humans, and were made to human scale; no huge overpowering deity was ever portrayed

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of Religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech," this Amendment is the most important part of the constitution. Without free speech, we the people of the United States would not be able to speak openly and freely about issues that affect our everyday life.

Growing up my yaya told me contently “Eíste Éllines, ton politismó mas, eínai to palaiótero kai pio agní deíchnoun to páthos, deíchnoun yperifáneia.” Which I quickly learned roughly translates to “You are Greek, you are the best, claim it, be proud.” Being Greek is like being the proudest group of people in the world and telling everyone you meet that you are in fact Greek and because you are Greek almost all Western cultural traditions can be traced back to the Greek—Greece is the birthplace of Western culture and we are proud of it. Now if all you know about the Greek culture is what you have seen from the “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” franchise, you are a bit misinformed but that is fine—the franchise did get a few concepts about Greek

Nearly every aspect of classical Greek life and culture is revealed by what they made. Much of what historians have gleaned about the Greek people during this period has come from the inspection of relics, architecture and ephemera from the period. Analysis of classical Greek literature, architecture and art, and every day ceramics can reveal everything from the role religion played in ancient Greeks’ lives, to the political views and landscape of the time, to what the people valued and admired. Things such as the Greeks’ dedication to their gods, contemporary political themes, and the interests of every day citizens are all revealed through the physical objects and literature created by the

Much of the history of humanity is understood and interpreted through the physical and conceptual arts of ancient civilisations. Athenian arts from the classical period generally depict the real or the ideal of specific cultural themes. Women had specific rights, roles and expectations around 5th century Athens, with importance prominent in areas of the household, religion and male opinion. The position of women in classical Athenian society is reflected and depicted within the Greek arts of that time.

There is much information on Ancient Greece, but how is it today? Well, for the most part, the modern Greek people take pride in their culture and speak highly of it, as one would considering how divine and interesting it is (“Greece Culture” 2). In relation to traditions and such, the people of Greece do not give sacrifices and tribute like they once would. However, many today continue to believe in old superstitions and uphold traditions — one of such includes clean Monday; that is their first day of Lent where many families go to the countryside (“Traditions in Greece” 2, 8). Another is that the Greek people still treat guests with extreme respect — immediately serving quick foods and drink. Nevertheless, modern traditions have arose. For

Early Greece set the stage for cultural development in the West. Progress was marred, however, by discrimination when it came to the role of women.

Ancient Greek civilization was very strict when it came to society and political views. The men clearly had power over the women. Society in this civilization was simple, men went to work, participated in military training, politics and theatre entertainment. Women on the other hand stayed at home to raise children and manage slaves. They also focused mostly on domestic labor and religion. Men had complete

Ancient Greece society is very similar to the modern day society because it both did one common thing which is the essence of the culture remained same throughout the centuries even though technology, fashion and Western influence have brought some changes to it. Some things that made their culture and customs so rich were the art, architecture such as sculptures by famous artists, paintings and infrastructure. Greeks were very advanced in sports and art which made their daily life more interesting and meaningful. Greek enjoyed rich food and mixed music and dance as part of their meal. One of the most important things about Greek culture is their religion such as gods who they prayed to and temples where they prayed. Even though we don’t

Sea is a big part of cultural life in Greece, it makes sense that many of the gods and goddesses in Greek mythology originated in the water. Though most of us think of the Olympian gods and goddesses when we think about Greek mythology, the gods and goddesses of the sea were also important parts of the the greek tradition. Poseidon Poseidon was the main god who controlled the sea. As the brother of Zeus, he was very powerful. Every sea creature and sea god and goddess fell under Poseidon’s domain.