GEOGRAPHY & THE POLIS
What was the Greek word for an independent city-state?
Polis
Which city-state was known for military discipline and a powerful land army?
Sparta
What type of democracy did Athens practice?
Which philosopher became famous for teaching by asking questions?
Which two Greek city-states were the major rivals in the Peloponnesian War?
Athens and Sparta
What geographic feature separated Greek communities and made land travel difficult?
Mountains
Which city-state became known for trade, education, public debate, and direct democracy?
Athens
What was the main institution where eligible Athenian citizens could debate and vote directly on major decisions?
The Assembly / Ekklesia
What is the name of the questioning approach associated with Socrates?
Socratic Seminar
Which city-state won the Peloponnesian War?
Sparta
Greece had limited fertile farmland. Name ONE way Greeks adapted to this challenge.
They grew crops such as olives and grapes, raised goats/sheep, traded for resources, or established settlements around the Mediterranean and Black Seas.
Who were the zelots
Conquered people forced to work agricultural land controlled by Sparta.
Name TWO groups that could NOT vote in the Athenian Assembly.
women, enslaved people, or resident foreigners/metics.
Which philosopher wrote about justice and government in The Republic and founded the Academy?
Plato
Even though Sparta won, how did the Peloponnesian War affect the Greek world overall?
It weakened the Greek city-states through population loss, economic damage, warfare, and continued political division, helping create conditions for Macedonia's rise.
How did the surrounding seas benefit Ancient Greek society?
They encouraged trade, travel, settlement, and cultural exchange.
Why did Sparta place such a strong emphasis on military strength?
Sparta needed military strength both to fight enemies and to maintain control over the much larger helot population.
Besides voting in the Assembly, name ONE other way Athenian male citizens participated in government.
Serving on juries, holding public positions, serving on the Council, debating public issues, etc.
Which philosopher emphasized observation, comparison, organization, and logical reasoning?
Aristotle
Why did Alexander's empire break apart after his death?
Alexander did not establish a stable succession system, and his generals fought for control, eventually dividing the empire into Hellenistic kingdoms
Explain how Greece's geography created BOTH isolation and connection.
Mountains separated communities and encouraged independent city-states, while the seas connected Greeks through trade, travel, and cultural exchange.
Give ONE major difference between Athens and Sparta and explain what that difference shows about their values.
Athens emphasized citizen participation, education, and public debate, while Sparta emphasized military discipline, obedience, and service to the state.
How could Athens be considered democratic while also having major limits on democracy?
Eligible male citizens could directly debate and vote on important decisions, but political citizenship excluded women, enslaved people, and resident foreigners.
Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle differed in their ideas, but what broader approach to learning did Greek philosophy encourage?
Questioning ideas, using reasoning, debating, examining evidence, and thinking critically rather than simply accepting explanations.
Explain the difference between cultural diffusion and cultural blending in the Hellenistic world.
Cultural diffusion is the spread of ideas, beliefs, technologies, languages, or customs between societies. Cultural blending occurs when traditions from different societies interact, combine, or influence one another.