Trojan War

Today in class, we took notes from Mr. Schick's power point. Below are the notes. The information on the Trojan War is my favorite part out of this information.

• The Mycenaeans' influence began around 2000 BCE.
• Mycenae is located on a rocky ridge on Peloponnesus, protected by a 20 ft wall.
• Mycenaean kings dominated Greece from 1600-1100 BCE.
• They controlled trade in the region
• 1400 BCE- Mycenaeans invaded Crete and absorbed Minoan culture.
• Trojan War- fought around 1200 BCE; part of Greek mythology- until the 19th century, many thought that it was fictional because gods and goddesses got involved.
• The goddess Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera were given the "apple of discord."
• Aphrodite made Helen, who was married, fall in love with Paris, who took her back to Troy.
• Around 1200 BCE, the mysterious "sea people" began to invade Mycenae, and burnt it down.
• Then the Dorians moved into the empty place (1150-750 BCE).
• Dorians were far less advanced; the trade-based economy collapsed; writing disappeared, talk about culture declined.
• Greek oral tradition- stories passed on by the word of mouth.
• Homer lived at the end of the "Greek Dark Ages."
• He composed epics of the Trojan War even without seeing what he was writing.
• The Iliad- possibly one of the last conquests of the Mycenaeans (the Trojan War).
• The Odyssey- Odysseus attempts to return home after the Trojan War, being thwarted by Poseidon, the god of the sea.
• The Homeric question- Homer may have been a mythical creation himself; a blind wandering minstrel; a heroic figure.