My Life in Ancient Greece

By: Sarah and Megan

About MeMy name is Giovanna. I am a

young woman who lives in Athens

and ever since I had my first visit

to the oracle I have been keeping

a scrapbook of what happens in

early Greece. In the following

pages you will see my life unravel

in front of you.

Map Of My CivilizationHistory explains that my

civilization started from

the 8th or 6th century BC

and my recent visit to the

oracle has warned me of

a terrible battle between

us and the Romans

ending my civilization in

the year 146th BC. To be

prepared for this battle I

have drawn a map of my

civilization.

Background

My civilization is known world wide for many things such as the Olympics, theatre, drama, our

art, architecture, poetry, and our government, (democracy). Our civilization felt that we needed

everyone’s opinion, (except, women, slaves, and foreigners), so our government started the

first democracy. We are also known for science. My neighbor, Parmenides found out that the

earth is round by studying its shadow on the moon. Lastly we are well known for our

beliefs/explanations of happenings. These explanations include the gods and we are so well

known for it, that the oracle says that people in a place called Ridgeview, and many other

places, will learn about our gods.

This is a drawing I made of the

moon when I stayed up with

Parmenides one night

Social Structure

First, slaves and free men separated in our civilization’s social life. From there it the free men are

divide weather they are a citizen or a foreigner. The most powerful social class is the class that

has men that have both their parents and themselves born in Athens. Sadly that does not apply to

me even thought both my parents and I were born in Athens because I don’t have any social life

myself, but it does apply to my brother and father. When my brother grows up he will be in the

highest social class and have a high status just like my father. My social and legal status comes

from my father, brother and my husband if I marry. Anyway when my father is not discussing

politics, working, and if he can find the money he might go to the theatre and watch drama. My

mother will stay at home most days spinning, weaving and other housework and when me and my

brother were not very old we would be playing with our toys or writing in our scrapbooks. Mostly in

our family we are all to busy to keep track of our social life.

This is

were my

father sat

when he

went to see

his first

theater

production.

This is my mother

when she just

finished spinning.

This is

my

brother

playing

with

his

toys.

This is my father

coming home.

This is me

drawing this

picture that

you are

looking at

right know.

My Home

My house is a simple, two room house made of mud bricks covered in plaster. Our roof is made of

pottery tiles and we have holes in our walls used as windows. Most citizens of Greece that are

lower class own homes with just one to three rooms like us. The houses of the wealthier citizens

are much bigger usually with two floors. The houses often contain pillars and are centered around a

courtyard. The first floor has the andron, which is the kitchen and dining room, along with the living

room. The top floor contains the bedrooms and the gynaecium. Gynaecium is a room where the

woman sew cloth and eat their meals. Our culture is very practical so we don’t tend to have a lot of

furniture in our houses, only what is needed. Our mattresses for our beds are made of a sack filled

with leaves; and our beds and couches were made either of a wooden plank with four legs or a

wooden frame with rope webbing and mats on top. Since we are too poor to afford lighting we wake

up with the sun and go to sleep when the sun goes down. Although, the more wealthy families

might have olive oil lamps to light their houses with.

A house made of mud bricks

covered in plaster with a

roof of pottery tiles.

How my wealthier friends lived.

My friend Talia, who is rather wealthy because her father was a government leader, always had

someone with her. She was not allowed to go out by herself; not only this but she was forced into a

marriage with a wealthy man. The same is with all rich woman. I’ve never been in her house but I

have walked by and seen that it is huge with a grand entrance and beautiful marble columns. Like

me she never went to school, all though she is home schooled. They consider a pale complexion to

be the prettiest shade on a woman. In relation to that, the upper class, like her, are required to

keep their faces shaded with a sun shade when it is hot. As you can see beauty is very important to

the rich. Another example of this is how they have trained servants to arrange their hair and

makeup.

This is a sun shade.

Because of the women's

wealthy she has someone

cover her face with a sun

shade when it is sunny

out.

Our Meals

Our religion and our God’s are a big part of our diet. One way our religion affects our appetite is that we do not kill and eat any tamed or domestic animals unless it had been sacrificed to the Gods first. We believe that it is cruel and not right. Although, if the animal is hunted in the wild it is okay to eat it. Another way our

religion affects the food choices we make is how certain Greek Gods like particular foods more than others. It is thought that Dionysos loves wine, and Demeter and Persephone are to love bread. In Greece we drink quite a large

amount of wine. Our meals also often consist of wheat, olive oil, and vegetables that we grow. We mostly grow legumes, such as lentils, beans, peas, and

chickpeas. We are also fond of fish and eat it quite frequently, although because of our approach to meat, we don’t eat very much red meat.

(our Greek name)

Atherina: A fish that

lives near our shore

Red wine

Family Life

In our Civilization the husband/father was the head of the household. My father could do what ever he wanted in the house and make us do what ever he wanted us to do. Lucky for the rest of the family, my father was a great man and he believed that he should treat everyone the way he wanted to be treated, if not better. However my father would make all the important decisions and was the only one that was a full citizen. My mother would do the daily chores including cooking and weaving and also raise my brother and I. We were poor and we felt it was not right, so we did not have a slave. This meant my brother and I had to help my mother and father with all the work. I, being a female, would help my mother and learn the female jobs around a household, and my brother, being a male, would help my father and learn the male roles. Wealthier families would have slaves to help with the daily chores.

This is my

when my

mother and

aunt would

teach me

the ways of

a women in

our

civilization.

In our family we

believed that

everyone should

be treated

equally.

Marriage

When I got married, my parents and my loving husband’s parents arranged it for us. The wedding

ceremony started after dark. My loving husband came over to my house in a chariot and had a

feast with us. Then I went back to his house in the same chariot. My family followed us carrying

gifts and my friends followed us playing music and lighting the way. His parents led us to the hearth

where there was fruit and nuts. I ate the fruit to show that all my basic needs would now come from

my husband. The next day our friends came bringing presents. Luckily for my family, there are

some advantages of being poor. One of these advantages was we were allowed to pick who, when,

and if we would like to marry. My friend was forced into a marriage with a man of the age 20, which

her father picked, when she was 14. Her father gave the groom’s parents a dowry for the marriage

and if he wanted a divorce he would have to give back the dowry. Once my friend was married she

still was not free and had to do what ever her husband wanted her to do. Also another one of my

friends was for forced to marry a man of the age 30, when she as 18. The same is with all rich

women.

��

This is a drawing of

when I first saw my

husband coming to

our house in the

chariot.

��

These pomegranate

seeds are the fruit I

ate to show that all

my basic needs

would now come

from my husband.

ChildbirthI have asked my mother about babies being born. One of the first things she told me was about all she had to do to prepare for my brother and I. She mentioned things like warm water, olive oil, warm fomentations, sea sponges, wool pieces, bandages, and a sweet fragrance. The water is to clean parts of the women’s body and the pieces of wool is to cover parts of the women’s body. The olive oil is to make it easier for the baby to come out and the bandages are for the newborn baby to be wrapped in. The warm fomentations to ease the pains and the sea sponges for sponging off. My mother also mentioned things like, a pillow, beds and a midwife’s stool or chair.

Sea Sponges

where used in

childbirth the

sponge of the

women and

baby. The

softest sea

sponges where

used the most.

Me and My Siblings Childhood

At a young age my siblings and I used clay pots in

our toilet training. As children we played with all

sorts of toys, mostly clay models of animals such

as pigs, and rabbits. We Also had clay dolls. In

order for my dolls to move we had leather thongs

attached to their arms and legs. Being rich, my

friend Talia, was excepted to have a tutor and

nursemaids to care and teach for her. Her

education included tradition female skills. Such as

weaving and spinning. She was also taught to

read, write, and calculate. In order for her to take

part in a special festival for woman that honours

Athena and other Goddesses her mother would

teach her secret Ancient songs and dances.

My brother and I were brought up quite differently because

of our gender. At the schools he was taught to be an

equally balanced individual with a healthy mind and body.

To build his mind his teacher taught him to read, write,

calculate, sing, recite poetry and memorize a combination

of words by heart. For the athletic benefits of schooling the

teachers would teach him gymnastics. Gymnastics in our

civilization includes: jumping, running, wrestling, and

throwing javelins. While practicing his wrestling skills it was

important that all boys try their best because if their

teacher thought they weren’t they would be beaten. We

take sports very seriously here.

A clay doll

Clay pot used

for toilet

training

A Future Civilization In A Land Called Canada

I had a visit to the oracle and she talked of a civilization in the future that lives in a place

called Canada. She said that the children their will grow up much differently than me. She said their

toys will be made of a material called plastic that could be easily manipulated into any shape

imaginable, unlike our hard clay dolls and animals. The oracle also said that some of the children’s

fathers and mothers worked, so the kids would be taken care of a person called a nanny or a

babysitter. She said these children wore all sorts of different clothes. For example she named

something they wear on their legs called jeans, and t-shirts made of cotton that they wear on the

upper half of their body. In Canada it is called child abuse and is against the law when someone

tortures a child against the child’s will. She said that boys and girls will have equal rights and they

will both go to school. This is hardly believable considering how no girl in Greece would dream of

going to school knowing only boys do. Even though there is that huge difference, the idea of school

is somewhat similar. In Canada the school will build both the mind and the physical aspects of the

human body. Just like in Greece, they believe both are important.

This is what the oracle said

the Canada flag will look like.

My clay rabbit (my

toy)

EducationBeing a girl in Athens, I never went to school and I would be educated at home. However my brother did. Everyday since he turned seven and until he was 14, I’ve asked him about school. He would tell me about how small the school was, about the one teacher and 10-20 boys, and about what new things he learned in reading, or writing, or math, or music, or at the wrestling school where they teach many sports. Usually poor families like us can’t afford the fee’s of the school. But my parents think that it is very important that my brother has a good education, so to afford the fee we go some nights with out food. Any way my brother once told me that they cover a board with wax and that they would carve out letters and numbers with a stylus. When they are done they smooth the wax so they can use it again the next day. My brother was also taught about voting in the assembly and was educated to become a good citizen of our city, Athens. When my brother turned 14 his public schooling stopped and his home schooling started. My father was a tradesman so my brother learned the way of the trade. Some of my brother’s friends wanted to work for the army so they stayed in school until they were 18 then they went to the army. My brother’s wealthier friends also kept their schooling up, although they now learn sophist or philosophy. My brother tells me that sophist is where they learn things like public speaking, rhetoric, and persuasion. Sophist and philosophy fee is even higher then the school’s fee so sadly only the wealthiest can take part in it. Philosophy is where they are taught to think and write about thinking. In Sparta boys would have to go to military training from age 7 – 20 and girls had to do physical training to because they believe that strong women make strong babies. In Sparta they believe in fighting, where as here in Athens we believe in discussing it first. My brother taught me some of the many things he leaned in school, so I decided to use them and practice them so that is why I’m making this scrapbook.

Here is the Alphabet that

my brother taught me

when he had time.

Here is a

hand

drawing of

my brother’s

teacher that

he gave to

me when he

was

explaining

how his

teacher

looked.

Religion

Religion impacts almost everything we do in Greece.

The God’s on Mount Olympus are in control of everything,

they determine if each person leads a good and happy life or

not. This is why we constantly praise the God’s. Whether it is

through festivals, temples, or sacrifice, every citizen of

Greece does. We also look to the god’s for all our debates. If

we are having a debate, argument, or want to hear what will

happen in the future, we go to the oracle. The oracle is

someone who can hear a certain God and tell you what the

God is saying. Each oracle works a different way. There is the

Pythia, a woman oracle, who is the oracle for Apollo. She

gets drunk from the smoke of burning laurel leaves and talks

to Apollo. The Priest will translate what she is saying for the

visitor. When we want to consult her, we go to the great

temple of Delphi. Do to their great powers, the oracle and the

priest have much supremacy and we listen carefully to

everything they say.

The Oracle Pythia

AthenaWe look up to Athena, one of our twelve Greek Gods and Goddesses

for many reasons. One is that she is the goddess of wisdom,

civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, female, arts, crafts, justice,

and skill. The second is that our city, Athens is named after her. Both

Poseidon and Athena loved our city and claimed it was theirs. Later

they decided to settle it with a contest of who could give the city the

best gift. Poseidon stuck his trident into a cliff which caused it to spew

out water, although the water was very salty so wasn’t very useful for

us. Athena’s gift was an olive tree. This is an amazing gift that gives

our city food, oil, and wood. So Athena won the contest and named

our city Athens. She lives on Mount Olympus along with the other 11

gods and goddesses we worship. Athena is Zeus’s, the king of our

gods and the king of the sky, favorite child. Athena was born in a very

unusual way. Her mother is Metis, the goddess of wisdom, and in

fear that she would make a son greater than Zeus, Zeus swallowed

her. Inside Zeus, Metis started to make a robe and helmet for her

new baby, Athena. This caused a huge headache for Zeus and finally

Hephaestus came and cut Zeus’s head in half and out came Athena.

She was already full grown and wearing the robe and helmet her

mother, Metis, had made her.

My ClosetA man in a toga, which

means he is probably in the

presence of a woman.

Woman in a

toga. As you

can see it is

held together

with pins

instead of

sewing.

Even though my parents were poor they always kept us well dressed. Men in Ancient

Greece only wear clothes when they are in front woman, otherwise they don’t. For

example during sports, swimming, in the mines, and during hot weather it just doesn’t

seem practical to wear clothes. Of course, woman are expected to always wear clothes

unless they are dancers or prostitutes. My friend, Talia, is a noble woman and she is

expected to wear a veil that covers her head and lower face. Our clothes don’t involve

much sewing, mostly different folds and a few pins. Although, we do have wonderful

embroidery and colours on our clothes.

Our Arts andMusic

Music is very important to all Greek

citizens. It is involved in many celebrations

and gatherings. For example marriage,

funerals, theatres, and religious

ceremonies all include music in their

gatherings. Much of our music is centered

around our religion. Like most Greek

citizens, my favorite instruments are the

kithara, lyre, aulos. The kithara and the

lyre are both string instruments, and the

aulos is a double-reed instrument.

These are the three

main kinds of columns in

our architecture.

We have many different forms of art in our

culture. A few of the most common forms of art

are weaving, pottery, and architecture. Our

pottery is very detailed and our designs and

scenes on them tend to be very dramatic or

lively. The decorations would be painted on

smooth red clay to form the pot. Marble is a very

important aspect of our architecture, especially

because we have so many marble quarries. It is

a strong substance so it is good for building. A

common piece of architecture here in Ancient

Greece are marble columns. We have three

different kinds of columns: Doric, Ionic,

Corinthian. The Doric column is more popular in

the mainland Greece. It’s top, the capitol, is plain

but the column is sturdy. The top has a square

shape. The Ionic is more common in Eastern

Greece. It is elegant and thinner with a capitol

that looks like a scroll. Although the Corinthian

isn’t very popular here, it is used quite often on

Roman temples. This column’s capitol is very

elaborate and the top is decorated with acanthus

leaves.

Thargelia

Thargelia takes place on the 6th and 7th of Thargelion on the Greek calendar, May –

June. This celebration occurs in Athens, my city-state. This festival has two main

reasons. One is to celebrate the first fruits, or grains of wheat of the season; and the

other is to release guilt from the town and start fresh. They release this guilt by

making a human sacrifice of one or two people, sometimes important people willing

to sacrifice themselves but usually criminals or outcasts, to the Gods. The scapegoat

would be fed, carried through the town, and then they would either be expelled,

dropped off a cliff, thrown into the ocean, or killed on a funeral pyre. The more guilt

the town felt the more serious the sacrifice. The festival also includes a sacrifice to

the Gods of the first fruits, or grains. This section of the festival started off the harvest

season. The final event of the festival, and my favorite, is a procession and an official

adoption of a person.

Uh-oh I’m running out of pages.It is a good time to stop anyway. So there you have it, my life story. It is quite different to some

place called Canada as the oracle predicted. My hope is to hid this book and have some one in

the future find it and she how I lived. If you are from the future that it appears that it worked and

I hoped you liked it. Just to clear some things up my husband and I are having a great life. Our

two darling children are playing with my old toys as I’m writing this. My brother is happy man

living with his wife and kids and my good friend … divorced her husband and now is married to

the love of her life. I’m now a sculpture and I love my job, so I guess everyone got their happily

ever after.

This is sculpture is my pride and joy of my

sculpting collection.

Bibliography For Pictures• Amazon : http://s3.amazonaws.com/readers/2008/09/21/342441_2.jpg

• Ancient Greece: http://ancientgreece-1b.blogspot.com/

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Bibliography For TextWebsites:Ancient Greece- http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Main_Page/

Ancient Greece-Art http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Art/

Ancient Greece-Culture http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Culture/

Ancient Greece-Life- http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Life/

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Pantheon- http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/athena.html

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Wiki.answers- http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_did_religion_affect_daily_life_in_greece

Wiki.answers- http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_were_the_ancient_greeks_known_for,

Wikipedia-Ancient Greece - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greece

Wikipedia-Athena- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athena

Wikipedia-Music - http://en.wikipedia.org./wiki/Music_of_ancient_Greece

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Books:Macdonald, Fiona. How to Survive as an Ancient Greek. Great Britain: Children’s Press, 1995.Macdonald, Fiona. Inside Ancient Athens. Great Britain: Book House, 2005.