Lesson 2: The Greek Mind

The Greek Mind

By MARGARET JACKSON

Greek Thinkers

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The word philosophy comes from the Greek word for “love of wisdom.” Greek thinkers known an philosophers created a new body of knowledge that later shaped the Western world.

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A group of Philosophers called the Sophists were teachers in ancient Greece. Sophists taught rhetoric, the art of public speaking and formal argument. Sophists did not believe that the gods influenced everyday life. They did not believe in absolute, or definite, right and wrong. They thought that something wrong for one person could be right for another.

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Multiple Choice

Where does the word philosophy come from?

• Greek for wisdom and thought

• Greek for love and wisdom

• Greek for learning and love

Socrates was trained as a sculptor but became a teacher of philosophy. We know about him from his students’ writings. Socrates did not agree with the Sophists. He thought there was an absolute right and wrong. He thought all real knowledge was buried deep inside each person.

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Socrates tried to help people find the knowledge inside themselves through the Socratic method of teaching. This meant

he did not lecture his students. Socrates asked them questions. He wanted them to think for themselves.

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Multiple Choice

Socrates was trained as a _______ but became a

teacher of philosophy.

• Painter

• Architect

• Sculptor

• Writer

Some leaders in Athens thought Socrates was dangerous. They said he encouraged people to question their leaders’

decisions. In 399 b.c., Socrates was arrested and found guilty of teaching young people to rebel. He was sentenced to death. Socrates could have left Athens, but he refused. He said that he

lived in Athens, so he had to obey the city’s laws. He drank poison to carry out his death sentence.

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Multiple Choice

Why was Socrates sentenced to death?

• He taught young people to rebel.

• He taught young people about philosophy.

• He taught all people to think for themselves.

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Plato was one of Socrates’ students. He wrote a book called The Republic. In it, he described his plan for the ideal society. Plato did not like Athenian democracy. He did not believe that everyone in society could make good decisions. His ideal government divided people into three groups. The top group was

philosopher kings. Plato felt they were wise enough to do what

was best for everyone rather than only what was best for themselves.

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Multiple Choice

Who made up the top group of Plato's ideal

government?

• Philosopher Kings

• Warriors

• Common People

• Priests

Warriors were the second group in Plato’s ideal society. Their job was to defend society against attack. The third group was everyone else. They did all of the jobs in society that were necessary to provide food, clothing, and shelter. Plato believed that the common people were too easily influenced and would make foolish decisions.

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Unlike most men at that time, Plato believed that women should have the same education and the same jobs as men. Plato started a school in Athens. It was called the Academy. His best student was Aristotle. Aristotle wrote more than 200 works on government, science, and the planets.

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Open Ended

In Plato's ideal society, who would do all the

work to provide food, clothing and shelter?

Multiple Choice

Plato believed that women should have the same

education and the same jobs as men.

• True

• False

In 355 b.c., Aristotle opened his own school called the Lyceum. His teaching focused on the idea that people should live moderately. His belief in observation, or looking at the world around him, was an important step in the development of modern science.

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Aristotle also wrote about government in his book Politics. He divided governments into three types. The first was monarchy, or rule by one person, such as a king. The second was oligarchy, or rule by just a few people. The third was democracy, or rule by the majority of the people.

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Aristotle thought that the best government was combination

of all three types. Aristotle's ideas influenced the founders of the

United States government.

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Multiple Choice

Which form of government did Aristotle think was the best?

• Monarchy

• Oilgarchy

• Democracy

• Combination of all 3 types

Poll

Which form of government would you have liked if you lived in Ancient Greece?

• monarchy—or rule by one person

• oligarchy—rule by a few people

• democracy—rule by many people

For thousands of years, people did not write history. They believed that the legends and myths passed from one generation

to the next were true.

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Then, in 435 b.c., Herodotus wrote the history of the Persian Wars. Though he believed that the gods affected historical events, he tried to separate fact from legend. He was the first to do careful research. Today, he is called the “father of history.” Thucydides was another famous historian of the ancient world. He did not believe that the gods affected human history. Thucydides tried to write everything the way it actually happened.

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New History and Science Ideas

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Multiple Choice

Who is known as the Father of History?

• Hippocrates

• Pythagoras

• Thucydides

• Herodotus

In ancient times, most people thought that the gods controlled nature. However, the early Greek scientists thought that people

could discover the causes of natural events by observing, investigating, and thinking.

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The first important Greek scientist was Thales of Miletus. He made discoveries and developed theories by observing and thinking. Another Greek scientist, Pythagoras, believed that all relationships in the world could be expressed in numbers. He is famous for developing the Pythagorean theorem. It is still used in geometry to figure out the length of the sides of a triangle.

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Multiple Choice

What did the Greek scientist, Pythagoras, believe?

• That numbers were needed to study philosophy.

• That all shapes should be drawn with numbers.

• That relationships could be epressed with philosophy.

• That all relationships could be expressed with numbers.

Hippocrates was a physician who is called the "father of medicine." He believed that diseases came from natural causes. He made important discoveries about different kinds of diseases. He also developed his own treatments to cure sick people.

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Hippocrates wrote a list of rules about how doctors should treat their patients. The rules are listed in the Hippocratic Oath. It says doctors should do their best to help the patient. It says they should protect the patient’s privacy. Today, doctors around the

world still promise to honor the Hippocratic Oath.

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Multiple Choice

Who is known as the Father of Medicine?

• Hippocrates

• Pythagoras

• Thucydides

• Herodotus

Open Ended

In your own words, what is the Hippocratic Oath?