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Meet Your Fellow
Olympians
You
are a Spartan!
Be
proud! You have endured unbelievable pain and hardship to become a
superior Spartan soldier and citizen! Taken away from your parents
at age 7, you lived a harsh and often brutal life in the soldiers
barracks. You were beaten by older children who started fights to
help make you tough and strong. You were often were whipped in
front of groups of other Spartans, including your parents, but
never cried out in pain.
You were given very little food,
but encouraged to steal food, instead. If caught stealing,
you were beaten. To avoid severe pain, you learned to be cunning,
to lie, to cheat, to steal, and how to get away with it!
Some of you are members of the
Spartan secret police and enjoy spying on slaves. If you find a
slave who is showing signs of leadership, you have orders to kill
them immediately. You are fierce, capable, and proud of your
strength. You know you are superior and are delighted to be
Spartan!
Spartan
Goals and Behavior at the Olympics:
Win
at all costs. Lie, cheat, do whatever it takes. If you can't win,
at least beat your archrival, those silly citizens of Athens. You
are the proud and fierce Spartans! Plot secretly with other Greek
city-states to sabotage any Athenian chance at victory. Cheer only
for your fellow Spartans at each event. Lie, cheat, steal, but do
not get caught, because that is the Spartan way. Good luck at the
games.
You are an
Athenian!
Be courteous. You
have been superbly educated in the arts and the sciences, and
trained to be extremely productive and capable in times of peace
or war. You are an achiever. Until age 6 or 7, you were taught at
home by your mother, or by a male slave.
From age 7-14, you
attended a day school in the neighborhood where you memorized
Homeric poetry and learned to play that magnificent instrument,
the lyre. You learned drama, public speaking, reading, writing,
math, and perhaps even how to play the flute. You attended four
years of higher school, and learned more about math and science
and government. At 18, you attended military school for two
additional years!
You are proud to be an Athenian!
Famed for its literature, poetry, drama, theatre, schools,
buildings, government, and intellectual superiority, you have no
doubt that your polis, Athens, is clearly the shining star
of all the Greek city-states.
Athenian
Goals and Behavior at the Olympics:
You
know your archrival, those horrible Spartans, will do anything to
win, even lie and cheat, but you are Athenians - you would never
stoop to such boorish behavior. Cooperate with your fellow
Athenians to defeat those brutish Spartans, and do your personal
best! You are Athenians, the clever, creative, courteous
representatives of that shining example of all that is fine and
noble, the polis of Athens. Good luck in the games!
You are a
Corinthian!
As
a coastal city-state, you have a glorious history as a cultural
and trade center. Although your schools are not as fine, perhaps,
as those of Athens, you have been educated in the arts and the
sciences. As a child, you were taught at home by your mother, or
by a male slave.
From age 7-14, you
attended a day school near your home where you memorized poetry
and studied drama, public speaking, reading, writing, math, and
the flute. You attended a higher school, if your parents could
afford it. You also went to military school for at least two
years.
Your polis is
famous for its bronze statues, pottery, and vase painters. You are
creative problem-solvers. To solve the problem of foreign money
pouring into your coastal polis, your city-state created
it's own coinage, forcing traders to convert their coin at your
banks. (For a fee!) To solve your problem of unemployment, you
created a huge and successful public works program.
Literature, culture, art, and businesses thrive in your
city-state. You are proud to be a practical, productive
Corinthian!
Corinthian
Goals and Behavior at the Olympics:
If
you can't win, help Argos and Megara to defeat those vain
Athenians, and those animals, the Spartans. Do what it takes, but
be honest about it. You cheer the winner of each event. You greet
your fellow Corinthians with warmth and good sportsmanship
whenever you see them. You are proud of your abilities, your
achievements, your honesty, and your obviously superior
city-state. Good luck in the games!
You are an Argive!
You have been educated in the
arts and the sciences, and trained to be productive and capable in
times of peace or war. You have much of
which to be proud.
Although your close
neighbor, Corinth, is on the coastline, your polis is
located on a plain, where the weather tends to be hot and dry
in the summer, and cold and wet in the winter. Your soil is not
especially fertile, and you must fight the elements to grow food.
In spite of this
hardship, your magnificent stone sculptures of athletes, rippling
with muscle, are the envy of many a Greek city-state. You are
famous for your wonderful musicians and poets. Drama reached new
heights in your polis. Plays are performed in open-air
theatres, drawing crowds of 20,000 or more Argive citizens!
Unfortunately, you
have a problem. When Athens and Sparta asked your polis to
send supplies and troops to fight the Persians, after the battle
of Thermopylae in 480 BCE, you refused. For this decision, you are
held in disgrace by the other Greek city-states.
Argive
Goals and Behavior at the Olympics:
Your
goal is to reverse the negative reputation you currently hold in
the ancient Greek world. You will have to work hard to convince
other city-states that your athletes, soldiers, scholars, orators,
architects, poets, dancers, and artists are as fine, if not
superior, to the other city-states. You cheer Argive victories,
and win as many events as you can. Your goal is to make sure that
Athens and Sparta don't win at all. (Your plan is to throw your
support to Corinth or Megara toward the end of the competition if
it appears you can not win.) You are Argives, hard-working,
honest, loyal, clever, creative, courteous representatives of
Argos, and of her glorious past. Good luck in the games!
You are a Megarian!
Be proud that you are a Greek and
come from such a respected city-state as Megara. As a coastal
city-state, your history is similar to Corinth's, your neighbor.
You believe your schools are as fine as those of Athens, although
you have no doubt that any Athenian would disagree. You have been
trained in the arts and the sciences. As a child, you were taught
at home by your mother, or by a male
slave.
From age 7-14, you
attended a day school near your home where you memorized poetry
and studied drama, public speaking, reading, writing, science,
poetry, the flute, the lyre, and a great deal of mathematics.
Like most Megarians,
you love money and have been trained to be an excellent
accountant. You attended a higher school, and went to military
school. Your polis is famous for its glorious textiles,
which are the envy of other Greek city-states. You have, of
course, your own coinage, an idea you copied from Corinth.
Literature,
culture, art, and businesses thrive in your city-state. You
believe you offer your citizens even more freedom than Athens.
(After the Peloponnesian War, Athens' famous philosopher, Plato,
moved to Megara, where he remained for 10 years, so perhaps you
are right! You also founded the city of Byzantium, also called
Constantinople, now called Istanbul, way back in 630 BCE.) You are
proud of your city-state's past and present achievements, and
proud to be a Megarian!
Megarian
Goals and Behavior at the Olympics:
If
you can't win, help Argos and Corinth to defeat those boastful
Athenians and those militant fanatics, the Spartans. If it comes
down to Athens or Sparta, cheer for Sparta, loudly. (They might be
militant, but those are good friends to have in time of war!
Besides, you are tired of hearing about wonderful Athens.) You are
Megarians, proud of your history, your flourishing
businesses, your world famous textiles, your freedoms, your
schools, your coastal advantage - your rich and vibrant
city-state, Megara. Good luck in the games!
More
About
the Ancient Greek Olympics
Story
of the Olympic Games (British Museum)
The
Olympic Games & here
Ancient
Olympics
The Ancient
Olympic Games
Ancient
Olympics compared to Modern Olympics
Go
for the Gold - It's Greek to Me Game
Awesome
Stories - Ancient Olympics
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