Sam

Language Arts

2/8/02

Daily Life in Ancient Greece

    Have you ever wondered who came up with  democracy?  The ancient Greeks had a lot of superior things going on in their city-states. Ancient Greece had a very sophisticated government. They had excellent food supplies, as well as very advanced entertainment.  They had very high quality clothes. And a very interesting civilization. 

     The Greeks had many forms of entertainment. One thing they did was go to the gymnasium and exercise so they had a healthy body. The athletes wore no clothes because they were proud of their bodies. Some people did different things for  entertainment because they were either rich  or poor.  The rich people played leisurely games and attended parties. Children played games with dolls in their free time if they weren't working.

     A main  aspect of entertainment was the festivals and the theater. The actors wore masks because they were so far from the viewers. The plays would last all day so the people brought food to eat. The men acted out both men and women part. 

    The house was an important part of the daily life. The house was made out of sun-dried brick. They were built around the courtyard so the people could go to the courtyard and be safe against attack. Sometimes the courtyard was inside the house.  

      The mistress managed almost every thing that went on around the house. She managed the moneybox instead of the master. She also took care of the kids. She did the cooking like making the meals and the snacks. The Greeks ate a lot of different seafood. Olives and olive oil was a part of their daily diet.  

        If the parents didn't want the child they would put the child out side leaving it to die. When the boys were 6, they went to school until he was 15. When he turned 18 he became a citizen.  He would then start his training to become a soldier. The girls were taught by their mother or a slave.

       The Greeks were the first to come up with democracy. They did a lot of things for government. The democracy started in the 4th-5th century BC. Every citizen was part of the government. They took part in a assembly to talk about what was going on in their city-state and whether to make changes or not. There was a smaller group called  the council, and they met separately in a place called the council house. There was a smaller group inside of that called the Prytany. They saw to it that whatever the assembly chose, it would be carried out. A really important job was keeping the enemy out of the city-state. 

    There was no full time army. If another city-state wanted to attack, the soldiers on guard would have to defend their city-state.

       The Greeks wore light clothing unlike our heavy clothes. They wore light clothes because it was hot there. The clothes were called Chilton and Himation. The clothes were draped over the body. They colored the clothes by plant dye. 

     The Greeks had a very interesting civilization.  They had great architecture and entertainment. They made many contributions to later civilizations.

Index

Sources

http://carlos.emory.edu/ODYSSEY/GREECE/daily.html

Jonathan Rutland, Look Inside an Ancient Greek Town