Final Examination
The Greek Achievement Fall 2007

Instructions: Type your answers. Print out the test answers and turn in to me on or before class time on December 7 (last day of class). You may email me the test by the same deadline, but do not consider it “received” until you get an email acknowledgement from me. Your responses should be significantly more detailed and full than they would be on a traditional in-class exam. Recommended length per essay is three typed pages, double spaced (approx. 800 words), but I am more interested in the content of your response than the length. Please proofread your answers for correct spelling.

Demonstrate knowledge of the texts and lectures whenever possible. If you cite texts directly, give the title and page number of the book. Do not cut and paste text from the Web. If I find that any part of your test is plagiarized from the Web or other sources, you will receive a zero.

Part ONE: (50) Answer the following question. Answer all parts of the question and write in complete sentences. Give specific examples to support your points.

The major periods of Greek history are the Bronze Age, the Dark Age, the Archaic period, the Classical period, and the Hellenistic. For each period, list what you think are the TWO most distinctive people, places, events, works of literature, or artworks (you should end up with 10 items for discussion). Then tell why you picked them (i.e. why are they important and why are they representative of this period?)

Part TWO: (50) Answer ONE of the following questions. Answer all parts of the question and write in complete sentences. Give specific examples to support your points.

1. Give a summary of the material presented on Greek philosophy and philosophers in (1) the Archaic period [Presocratics] (2) the Classical period [Socrates, Plato, Aristotle] and (3) the Hellenistic [Stoics, Cynics, Epicureans]. What is the main subject matter in each period? Does it have any relevance for our lives today? Why or why not?

2. Write a capsule summary of Greek history, recounting the 10 most important people (Themistocles, Pericles, etc) , events (wars, disasters), and societal changes. (rise of the polis, development of democracy, etc) Where possible, explain why things happened the way they did. Begin with the Bronze Age and end with the establishment of the Hellenistic kingdoms.

3. Discuss the following female characters from the works we have read: Penelope, Nausicaa, Circe, Clytemnestra, Phaedra. Keep in mind the following questions: (1) Does the way they are portrayed reflect stereotypes in Greek culture or do they seem individual and unique? (2) Do they act like Greek women are "supposed" to act? (3) Do the pictures of Greek women we get in literature agree with or contradict what we know of historical women's lives? (4) Do you think it makes any difference in the way these women are portrayed that all the authors are male?