Ancient Greece Essay

The Ancient Greeks Ancient Greek history starts around 2000 BCE and with the arrival of Indo-European settlers in the Aegean Rim. These are the settlers that the Ancient Greeks take for their ancestors. The Ancient Greeks have a deep and expansive history. The Greeks rose from individual settlers to developing entire armies and colonies. Ancient Greeks also developed some of the first philosophers and saw a deep passion for the arts and humanities. It was the Ancient Greeks who founded the powerful cities of Sparta, Athens, and Miletus. The history of Ancient Greece is long and prosperous, and is one of the most fascinating times in history to study. This topic is interesting to me because I have always enjoyed the Ancient Greek …show more content…
The city of Mycenae was a arrogant militaristic society. The city was held back by internal division, as the geography of Greece created valleys and platues in which a ruler could practically close off and develop a small kingdom, where the common citizens were basically no better off than a slave. Life was centered around agriculture and farms, but they were also deeply involved in trade: “the Mycenaean civilization had trading contact with other Aegean cultures is evidenced by the presence of foreign goods in Mycenaean settlements” (www.ancient.eu/Mycenaean_civilization/). The Mycenaeans were able to trade to and from each other and competed for the ever so important trade routes and markets. As with much of Ancient Greek history, it is found that separate settlements are within constant communication with each other. During the Mycenaean age, the settlements were fighting each other, however, but this emphasizes the civilizations militaristic attitudes. The Mycenaeans also contributed to the arts, creating somewhat a new style of art, having a “more schematic and less life-like representation. This style would become the dominant one throughout the Mediterranean” (www.ancient.eu/Mycenaean_civilization/). Frescos from this age often depicted battle scenes, warriors, and powerful animals.(ancient.eu) It seems as if the militarism of the …show more content…
Although the Mycenaean decline is association with this event, the Mycenaean age likely ended for other reasons as well. It is more likely that a large scale event such as famine or a plague brought death upon themselves. During this time, the Mycenaean population declined by a good ninety percent. The diminishing Mycenaean population resulted in the conclusion of the isolated kingdoms that peppered the Aegean Rim. This smaller population contributed to a smaller demand for resources, such as food (109). Although many of the Mycenaean population had disappeared by this point, the remaining citizens found a society where famine was rare. There was plenty of food for everyone to eat. It is with the decline of the Mycenaean age that villages and towns became “self-governing, which inspired a sense of independence among the people” (109). These resulting cities were called polis. These Polis would become a strong center of society for ancient Greece: “A Polis consisted of an urban centre, often fortified and with a sacred centre” (www.ancient.eu/polis/). The Polis were independent from each other “in terms of political, judicial, legal, religious and social institutions and practices” (www.ancient.eu/polis/). Polis emphasizes the start of the 'true ' ancient Greek society, where the Polis would expand its