| Life in Greece | |
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| Topic Started: Apr 13 2008, 08:55 PM (165 Views) | |
| ShinLi | Apr 13 2008, 08:55 PM Post #1 |
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Ancient Greece Greece is an archipelago of hundreds of bigger islands and about 2,000 smaller islands. The inland of Greece is very mountainous, four fifths of Greece consists of mountains and hills. Perfect for goats, but not to build greek cities and towns on. Due to this fact, a lot of settlements arose alongside the Greek coastal line. The kingdoms are small and well organized. These kingdoms are also known as 'city-states'. A large city was the main 'capital' where the surrounding land and towns were apart of. Each city-state has it's own king. Some city-states are a lot more powerful then others. Some examples of powerful city-states are Athens and Sparta. Every city-state also has their own army, some more powerful then others, some better organised then others. Wars and petty fights about land ownership are frequent amongst neighbouring, equal powerful, city-states. But not only city-states have their own armies. There are warlords roaming Greece and beyond, killing, raiding and burning cities and towns as they travel. They capture people to sell again as slaves on the market, and they plunder towns for food, weapons and clothing. Some warlords have bigger plans, other smaller, some want to take over cities, other's just roam across Greece plundering their way around. Religion The ancient Greeks are a deeply religious people. They worship many gods whom they belief appear in human form and yet are endowed with superhuman strength and ageless beauty. Many places had their own set of gods, or one god, who they belief protects the city, town or village. Gods can appear and dissapear whenever and wherever they like, and seem to be able to be in different planes of reality. When being amongst humans they can take any form they like, or be invisible to the mortals. They are immortal and each god has their own power. Gods however aren't much different then mortals personality wise, most are petty, and some are cruel, and only care about their own power, and try to get more people to belief in them. Apart from being immortal and having some supernatural powers, gods aren't much different then mere mortals. In the replies below you'll fine more specific info about life in Ancient Greece, and in more specific kingdoms like Attica and Sparta etc. This is of course general information how 'general' citizens and peasants live their lifes. This is by no means ment as specific rules on how your character has to live his/her life. If you have any questions on any of the information, you are always free to pm both me (ShinLi) or Andy ^_^. General Life in Attica Life in the Countryside Eating Habits of the Greek Life in Sparta References: http://www.crystalinks.com/greekculture.html (Also read more indepth info if you like on weddings, dancing,music, story telling, pets and family life if you want that kind of info for your character) Edited by ShinLi, Apr 27 2008, 08:30 PM.
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| ShinLi | Apr 25 2008, 07:02 PM Post #2 |
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General life in Attica If you live in Attica (this mostly counts for all other city-states too) you are either a free citizen, or a slave. Free citizens have rights, slaves have no rights, and are in service of rich families and land owners. Leaders of Attica: The King is the leader of Attica. The king stands at the head of a land-owning aristocracy known as the ‘Eupatridae’ (well-born). There is a council which meet on the hill of Ares, called the ‘Areopagus’ in Athens. There are three appointed subleaders that work below the king, each with their own duties and tasks: Archon: Has the authority to administer and enforce the law (a sort of judge), also called ‘chief Magistrate’. (almost all towns/cities have an Archon) Polemarch: Head of the armed forces (leads the army of the king, only one, but has many commanders below him), the Polemarch however reports back to the king. And has to follow the king's orders. Archon Basileus: Responsible for the town/cities religious arrangements. (almost all towns/cities have an Archon Basileus) Citizens: Only free, land owning, native-born men can be citizens entitled to the full protection of the law. Also the only citizens who are able to vote are men. Women, slaves and strangers do not have the right to vote in a city-state. Being of a particulary rich family doesn't give you more priviliges or power then less rich families, at least that is how it is supposed to be. Most families own slaves as household servants and labourers. Even poor families might own a few slaves. It is not allowed to beat or kill slaves. Owners often promise to free a slave in the future to encourage slaves to work hard. Slaves who are freed do not become citizens. Instead they are put in a 'class' that also includes people from foreign countries or other city-staters who are officially allowed to live in the state. These people are called 'Metics' (one who lives among.) Slaves do have the right to have a family and own property. However they have no political rights. Educations in Athens In Athens, the purpose of education was to produce citizens trained in the arts, to prepare citizens for both peace and war. Other than requiring two years of military training that began at age 18, the state left parents to educate their sons as they saw fit before that age. The schools were private, but the tuition was low enough so that even the poorest citizens could afford to send their children for at least a few years. Until age 6 or 7, boys generally were taught at home by their mother. Most Athenian girls had a primarily domestic education. The most highly educated women were the hetaerae, or courtesans, who attended special schools where they learned to be interesting companions for the men who could afford to maintain them. Boys attended elementary school (either a neighborhood(public) or private school) from the time they were about age 6 or 7 until they were 13 or 14. Part of their training was gymnastics. Younger boys learned to move gracefully, do calisthenics, and play ball and other games. The older boys learned running, jumping, boxing, wrestling, and discus and javelin throwing. The boys also learned to play the lyre and sing, to count, and to read and write. But it was literature that was at the heart of their schooling. Books were expensive and rare, thus subjects were read out-loud and the boys had to memorize everything. At 13 or 14, the formal education of the poorer boys ended and was followed by apprenticeship at a trade. The wealthier boys continued their education under the tutelage of philosopher-teachers. The most prestigious school is the Athens University for the Arts, where wealthy boys above 18 could study. Athens Athens is the center of Attica, it's capital. It is also known for it's arts, learning and philosophy. In the middle of the city there is a large hill which is called 'Acropolis'. This is where the temples for the gods have been built in the hopes that the gods will protect the city and it's inhabitants. It is the religious and cultural center for the Athenians. On the Acropolis is also the theatre of Dionysos, one of the first and most famous theaters of whole Greece. Nowadays Athens has more theaters. But the theatre of Dionysos is visited by many rich citizens and the royal family. In times of battle the Acropolis can also function as a refuge, as it can also be used as a defensive fortress due to its walls. The centre of the city is the Agora though. This is a market place, but is also used for festivities and is the main place during the day to find conversation, buy food, fresh fish, weapons, textiles and a lot more. Also slaves are sold on the market daily. Further bankers can be found who exchange foreign money for greek money. As on the larger Agora's (most bigger cities have an Agora, as well as the larger towns) also merchants from other parts of Greece or even outside Greece can be found. Serveral shops are also located in buildings on the edge of the Agora. Houses in Athens Around the Agora are houses, which stretch as far as the eye can see, and go into the suburbs of the city, with many narrow streets and blocks of houses. Basically there is a street or pavement around every single house. Every greek, either poor or rich, build their houses from clay and straw, or wood. The clay and straw they mix and make rectangle brigs out of the mix, and let them dry in the sun to make hard stones. The houses of rich families have a small alley which leads from the front door to the courtyard. Some families have a well, others not, most houses in Athens and bigger cities do have wells. Around the courtyard lie serveral rooms. The houses only have small windows on the outside, because fresh, cool air comes from the courtyard into the house. The largest room is called the 'andron'. Here dinner is served and parties are held, next to the andron is the kitchen with in the middle a large fireplace to cook on. There is also a working room for the woman or slaves to spin and weave textiles. Another room is used for the bath, with a large tub. The bedrooms are usually on the first floor. Which is reached via a stair in the courtyard. Some people have a shop or workshop at their houses. In the countryside animals reside in a special part of the house that is build for the animals. Houses in smaller settlements could also be billed of wood. The richer someone is, the larger their house usually is. Climate of Attica: The climate is typically Mediterranean. With hot dry summers and generally low rainfall totals. Winters are cool and generally mild in the low-lying areas adjacent to the sea, but are harsher in the mountains. Snow can fall in higher altitudes. Forest fires and flash floods in low-lying areas close to the sea or rivers are common. Edited by ShinLi, Apr 27 2008, 08:22 PM.
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| ShinLi | Apr 25 2008, 07:02 PM Post #3 |
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Life in the Countryside Life in the countryside might sound like an idyllic lifestyle, but it is hard. People have to work hard all day, the whole year long. People from villages who don´t own their own shop, who aren´t a blacksmith or an inn keeper, hold animals and farm. The general animals that are kept are goats and sheep, because they are the best suited to the hills and rocky grounds. They provided meat, wool, and milk (where cheese would be made off). Pigs, geese and chickens were also raised. Both for meat and the latter for eggs. Oxen are rare and normally used as a work animal, though they are occasionally used as sacrificial animals. Donkeys, mules and their various mixes were raised as pack or draught animals. Horses were only owned by the richer citizens, or at larger farms. It were expensive animals. Further there were people who kept bees to provide honey. The only source of sugar known to the Greeks. Also used in medicine and the production of mead (an alcholic drink made of honey, water, and yeast) Generally barley was harvested, and only a small amount of people harvested wheat. Barley was harvested more, only because the growing of barley was less demanding and more productive. Olive plantations are a long-term investment: it takes more than twenty years for the tree to provide fruit, and it only fruits every other year. Grapes also do well in the rocky soil, but demand a lot of care. Main crops were cabbage, onion, garlic, lentils, chick pea and beans. As well as figs, almond, pomegranate. Herbs were also grown like sage, mint, thyme, savoury, oregano etc., as were oilseed plants such as linseed, sesame, and poppy Vegetables, fruits, nuts and products to come from the countryside: Olives Grapes Wheat Barley Ficus Almond Fish Birds Meat Olive oil Milk Yogurt Chicken Eggs Edited by Andy, Apr 27 2008, 04:13 PM.
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| ShinLi | Apr 25 2008, 07:02 PM Post #4 |
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Eating habits of the Greek Breakfast: -Warm porridge -Barley bread dipped in wine, sometimes complemented by figs or olives Noon: - Quick lunch, might consist out of bread with feta (goat cheese) Late Afternoon -additional light meal Dinner (at nightfall) -Most important meal of the day -Fist, vegetables. Followed by cheese, grapes, olives and almonds. Bread is what's eaten the most in daily life. Potatoes and rice is something the Greece do not know of. Meat is only eaten on special occasions like weddings or on sacrificing festivities. Although eating meat is more common in the countryside, but still it is not an everyday meal. Cooking is mostly the job of the women and/or slaves. Meat is roasted above the fire, and in an oven in the courtyard bread is baked. Pottery exists out of pots, cups and plates. In a big pot or kettle water, soup and vegetables are cooked. Sugar does not exist in ancient greece, and honey is used as a sweetner for most things. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuisine_of_Ancient_Greece Edited by Andy, Apr 27 2008, 04:09 PM.
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| ShinLi | Apr 25 2008, 07:04 PM Post #5 |
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Life in Sparta The goal of Spartan education was to produce disciplined soldier-citizens. Spartans believed in a discipline, self-denial and simplicity, they became extremely loyal to Sparta throughout their life. At the age of 6 or 7 children, both boys and girls, were sent to school. From the age of 7-18 education and training was undertaken, they joined sternly disciplined groups under the supervision of a hierachy of officers. The boys lived and trained in barracks and were fed very little food, being told that stealing food is fine if you are not caught, but if they were caught, they were beaten. They had no comforts like shoes or soft beds and trained endlessly. Between ages 18 and 20, a test is taken to test their fitness, military ability, and leadership skills. If they fail this test they become 'perioikos', or the middle class, they were allowed to own property, have business dealings, but they had no political rights, and were not classed as citizens. If they past they became citizens. They were not allowed to touch money, this was the duty of the middle class. Spartan soldiers spent most of their time with their fellow soldiers. When married (mostly around the age of 20, after the test) they did not live with their wives and children, but in the barracks until their 30th. After this it was optional to live with their wife, or stay to live in the barracks. Military service did not end until a Spartan male reached the age of 60. At age 60, a Spartan soldier could retire and live in their home with their family. Their decision at age 30 influenced their further career. If they decided to stay in baracks they could climb up higher in the hierachy, if they decided to leave, this was harder, and most males stayed a normal soldier. Sparta also provided training for girls (unlike other city states) that went beyond the domestic arts. The girls were not forced to leave home, but otherwise their training was similar to that of the boys. They too learned to run, jump, throw the javelin and discus and wrestling. They lived, slept and trained in their sisterhood's barracks. It was believed that strong females produced strong babies. At age 18, if a Sparta girl passed her skills and fitness test, she would be assigned a husband and allowed to return home. If she failed, she would lose her rights as a citizen, and became a perioikos, a member of the middle class. Slaves: Climate The area has hot summers and mild winters in most of the prefecture, while in the mountains, especially Taygetus, snow is very common throughout the winter. Edited by ShinLi, Apr 27 2008, 08:12 PM.
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