Monday, June 29, 2009

Greek literacy

Historians of ancient Greek civilization generally divide it into the following five periods. The history of the region extends further into the past, but these are usually the ones mentioned. These divisions are meant to mark out important developments in the history (e.g. collapse of the Mycenaean civilization, rediscovery of literacy, etc.)

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Greek mythology

Ancient Greek mythology is generally subdivided into the titans (e.g. Cronus, Atlas), the gods (e.g. Zeus, Poseidon), and the heroes (e.g. Heracles, Perseus). There are often several versions of these stories, which were often influenced by or adapted from pre-existing mythologies (such as the Egyptians, Babylonians, or Mesopotamians). In a nutshell, the ancestry of the gods can be traced back to Uranus and Gaia, who gave birth to the titans as well as other odd creatures.

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Adventures in Greek

A while back I had wanted to start on an intellectual adventure that would probably last me several lifetimes. That adventure is to get myself acquainted with the roots of Western thought and history. I wasn’t really sure how to go about doing it, so I looked for guides online from people, professionals and amateurs, who have taken the time to share their ideas, progress, and journey.

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Reading Now

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The Complete Greek Tragedies
by Euripides

Last Books Read

Sophocles II: Ajax, The Women of Trachis, Electra & Philoctetes by Sophocles

Prometheus Bound and Other Plays by Aeschylus

The Odyssey by Homer

Sophocles I: Oedipus The King, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone by Sophocles

Theogony and Work and Days by Hesiod

The Iliad by Homer

Mythology by Edith Hamilton

The Oresteia by Aeschylus

The Greeks by H. D. F. Kitto

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