The ancient Greek religious beliers grew out of myths and legends. Early Greece was the birthplace of western philosophical ethics. Philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle helped to spread Greek culture to the Mediterranean world. Ancient Greek literature also held a very important position, not only because much of it was of excellent quality but also because until the mid-19th century the greater part of the literature of the Western world was produced by writers who were familiar with the Greek tradition. Even in the fields of architecture and sculpture, Greek work was considered the most highly developed in the world. Ancient Greek culture left a great heritage for the modern world through its influence on the development on modern Western literature and the arts.
古希腊时期是从公元前1200年到公元前232年（亚历山大大帝去世）这段时期。在这段时期古希腊文明盛行于地中海地区，在政治、哲学、艺术和科学领域都有非凡成就。古希腊文明对西方世界的文学和艺术的发展产生了深远的影响。
古希腊的宗教信仰起源于神话和传说。古希腊也是西方哲学的发源地，以苏格拉底、柏拉图和亚里士多德为代表的古希腊哲学家在促进希腊文化向地中海周边国家传播方面起到了很大的作用，他们在人类思想发展史上占有崇高的地位。古希腊文学也占重要地位，在这一时期产生了很多优秀的作品。到19世纪中期，西方世界文坛上的大师们多数都谙熟古希腊的文学传统。在建筑和雕刻领域，古希腊的作品也是当时世界上最优秀的。古希腊文明相影响了西方世界文化的各个领域，是一笔丰厚的文化遗产。
（本文选自人民教育出版社《中学英语文化背景知识手册》，2008年8月第1版）
