Ch 22: FTCE Social Science: History of Ancient Greece
About This Chapter
FTCE Social Science: History of Ancient Greece - Chapter Summary
Review what you learned about ancient Greek history in your schooling with this chapter. Subjects covered by these lessons include:
- The development of the Greek alphabet and writing
- Major myths and religions in ancient Greece
- Life for women and slaves in ancient Greece
- Ancient Greek art, pottery, sculpture and architecture
- The role of ancient Greece in the birth of philosophy and history
- Sparta's society and caste system
You can use the video lessons to focus on each of these subjects in preparation for the FTCE
Social Science exam. Transcripts of the lessons are also available, and you can test your knowledge with short multiple-choice lesson quizzes.

1. History of the Alphabet: From Cuneiform to Greek Writing
This lecture follows the development of writing, from the pictographs of proto-cuneiform to the symbolic phonemes of cuneiform and hieroglyphics. Then from the abjads of the Phoenecians, Minoans, Hebrews and Arabs to the complete alphabets of the Greeks. It explores the limitations and strengths of each development and draws modern parallels.

2. Greek Myth and Religion
This lecture examines the troubles of generalizing Greek religion, before doing just that. It lists the major Olympian gods and their roles. It then explores the function of heroes in Greek religion. Next, the relationship between gods and men is laid out. Finally, it explores aspects of Greek myth that reemerge in Christianity.

3. Greek City-States and Governments
This is a lecture about Greek city states. It begins with an examination of the influence geography had on Greek politics, by comparing Greece to Egypt and Mesopotamia. This is followed by a loose characterization of Greek poleis in general, with specific attention paid to constitutions, colonialism and competition.

4. Women of Greece
The Greeks were one of the most progressive ancient civilizations, but that wasn't true in how they treated women. This lesson goes over facts about how women were treated and explains how the best place to be a woman in Greece was Sparta.

5. Ancient Greek Art, Pottery and Sculpture
A survey of the transitions in Greek art, with special emphasis placed on the importance of materials and technique. This lecture explores Greek pottery styles from geometric to Orientalizing to black- and red-figure vases. It then turns to sculpture from Archaic styles to realism to idealism. Slides are shown throughout to get students familiar with these Greek styles.

6. Ancient Greek Architecture: Dorian, Ionic & Corinthian
This lecture discusses Greek architecture and its legacy. Enjoy our exploration of Greek columns, temples, stadiums, treasuries and theaters, and see why the Greeks might have reached the pinnacle of architectural achievement.

7. The Birth of Philosophy: The Presocratics
This lecture covers the advent of philosophy. It first differentiates philosophy from religion, drawing parallels to modern science. It then establishes the basic questions of Presocratic philosophy: What is matter? and What causes change? The rest of the lecture demonstrates how these questions developed as they were tackled by generations of Presocratic philosophers. Finally, it makes plain our incredible debt to the Presocratics.

8. History of Sparta
In this lesson, you'll examine forces that shaped a Spartan society of elite warriors. We'll also explore the stratified caste system created by Lycurgus.

9. Birth of History: Herodotus' Persian War
This lecture begins with Herodotus' special place in history. It then looks at the miracle at Marathon and seeks to explain how it happened by comparing phalanx warfare to Persian warfare. Following that, we'll run through a brief summary of the rest of the war, with special attention drawn to Greek triremes.

10. Slavery in Ancient Greece
This lesson explores slavery in ancient Greece. We examine the various forms slavery took in Greece, comparing Spartan serfdom to Athenian chattel slavery. Finally, we enumerate the duties and rights of Athenian slaves.
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Other Chapters
Other chapters within the FTCE Social Science 6-12 (037): Practice & Study Guide course
- About the FTCE Social Science Test
- FTCE Social Science: Introduction to Geography
- FTCE Social Science: Earth's Spheres & Internal Structure
- FTCE Social Science: Plate Tectonics
- FTCE Social Science: Weathering & Erosion
- FTCE Social Science: Impact of Humans on the Environment
- FTCE Social Science: Human Movement & Settlements
- FTCE Social Science: Tools for Geography
- FTCE Social Science: Scarcity, Choice & the Production Possibilities Curve
- FTCE Social Science: Economic Systems & Markets
- FTCE Social Science: Factors in Global Economics
- FTCE Social Science: Consumer Decisions & Credit
- FTCE Social Science: The US Constitution
- FTCE Social Science: American Government
- FTCE Social Science: The Election Process
- FTCE Social Science: State & Local Governments
- FTCE Social Science: US Foreign Policy
- FTCE Social Science: Political Systems
- FTCE Social Science: Rights & Responsibilities of US Citizens
- FTCE Social Science: Early Civilizations of World History
- FTCE Social Science: Ancient Civilizations in the Near East
- FTCE Social Science: The Rise & Fall of the Roman Empire
- FTCE Social Science: Early Indian Civilization
- FTCE Social Science: Early Chinese Civilization
- FTCE Social Science: African History
- FTCE Social Science: The History of Asia
- FTCE Social Science: Pre-European Civilizations in North America
- FTCE Social Science: The Late Middle Ages
- FTCE Social Science: The Renaissance in Europe
- FTCE Social Science: The Reformation Across Europe
- FTCE Social Science: The Enlightenment
- FTCE Social Science: The Age of Exploration
- FTCE Social Science: The Industrial Revolution
- FTCE Social Science: The Age of Revolution
- FTCE Social Science: Impact of Imperialism & Nationalism
- FTCE Social Science: World Religions
- FTCE Social Science: The Colonial Period in the Americas
- FTCE Social Science: The American Revolution
- FTCE Social Science: The Making of a New Nation
- FTCE Social Science: Westward Expansion
- FTCE Social Science: Life in Antebellum America
- FTCE Social Science: American Civil War
- FTCE Social Science: Reconstruction
- FTCE Social Science: The Progressive Era
- FTCE Social Science: Impact of Immigration Patterns in the US
- FTCE Social Science: The US in World War I
- FTCE Social Science: The Roaring 20s in America
- FTCE Social Science: The Great Depression
- FTCE Social Science: The US in World War II
- FTCE Social Science: The Cold War
- FTCE Social Science: Civil Rights Movement in America
- FTCE Social Science: A Globalized World
- FTCE Social Science: Florida's History
- FTCE Social Science: Effective Teaching of the Social Sciences
- FTCE Social Science 6-12 Flashcards