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1. Using the documents, how did Greek mythology and the poems attributed to Homer influence the development of Greek culture?



Your answer should include the following points:
  • In Greek mythology the gods are strong and unpredictable and a force against which mankind must work.
  • Greeks feared the gods and often took actions to appease them.
  • Fascination with the gods commonly found its way into Greek artwork and literature.
  • Homer’s poems modeled heroism, honor, and nobility – core Greek virtues.
  • Homer’s writings were a primary educational tool for Greek males.

2. Using Athens as an example, how would you describe the development of the polis from its origins to the emergence of a democratic system of government?



Your answer should include the following points:
  • Like most poleis, the government of Athens was maintained initially by aristocratic elites.
  • Until 594 BCE an aristocratic council known as the Areopagus governed Athens.
  • The agrarian crisis in Athens led to further dominance by the aristocrats.
  • Dissatisfaction with this situation led to a short-lived tyranny in 632 BCE.
  • Draco worked to end aristocratic dominance by passing laws against aristocratic violence.
  • Solon continued Draco’s efforts by canceling outstanding debts, freeing slaves, and forbidding the use of a citizen’s person as collateral. He created a written constitution and broadened the social base of the government.
  • Later Cleisthenes laid the foundations of the democratic system that lasted throughout the classical age.

3. Why did Sparta develop into a conservative military state?



Your answer should include the following points:
  • With the conquest of Messenia, around 725 BCE, helots (serfs) outnumbered Spartans by about ten-to-one and the risk of them rising against their masters increased.
  • Sparta became agriculturally self-sufficient with the acquisition of Messenia and found itself surrounded by a hostile population.

4. How did the Delian League become a kind of Athenian empire, and how did this development contribute to the coming of the Peloponnesian Wars?



Your answer should include the following points:
  • The size of its fleet made Athens the dominant partner in the League and they used the alliance to further their own purposes.
  • Athenians sought control of grain supplies and seized new territories and forbade allies from withdrawing from the league.
  • The Peloponnesians and the Delians feared that Athens sought political control over the Greek world and this fear led to the Peloponnesian Wars.