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Lesson Plan Information
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Title: Cleopatra
Introduction: Cleopatra VII Philopator (69 – 30 BC) was the last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. She was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, a family of Greek origin which ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great's death during the Hellenistic period. Cleopatra originally ruled jointly with her father Ptolemy XII Auletes and later with her brothers, Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV, whom she married as per Egyptian custom, but eventually she became sole ruler.
As pharaoh, she consummated a liaison with Julius Caesar that solidified her grip on the throne. She later elevated her son with Caesar, Caesarion, to co-ruler in name.
After Caesar's assassination in 44 BC, she aligned with Mark Antony in opposition to Caesar's legal heir, Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (later known as Augustus). With Antony, she bore the twins Cleopatra Selene II and Alexander Helios, and another son, Ptolemy Philadelphus. Her unions with her brothers produced no children. After losing the Battle of Actium to Octavian's forces, Antony committed suicide. Cleopatra followed suit, according to tradition killing herself by means of an asp bite on August 12, 30 BC. She was briefly outlived by Caesarion, who was declared pharaoh by his supporters, but he was soon killed on Octavian's orders. Egypt became the Roman province of Aegyptus.
To this day, Cleopatra remains a popular figure in Western culture. Her legacy survives in numerous works of art and the many dramatizations of her story in literature and other media, including William Shakespeare's tragedy Antony and Cleopatra, Jules Massenet's opera Cléopâtre and the 1963 film Cleopatra. In most depictions, Cleopatra is put forward as a great beauty and her successive conquests of the world's most powerful men are taken to be proof of her aesthetic and sexual appeal. In his Pensées, philosopher Blaise Pascal contends that Cleopatra's classically beautiful profile changed world history: "Cleopatra's nose, had it been shorter, the whole face of the world would have been changed." - Wikipedia.
Subject: Ancient Civilizations
Grade Level: 6-8
Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will understand that:
- Comparing people and ranking them is a difficult challenge.
- People are important to society in many different ways.
Concepts / Vocabulary: Consort, femme fatale, linguist, dysfunctional, inflation, prenuptial, disembarked.
Materials: Access to a photocopier, biographical reference materials, computers with access to the Internet.
Time Needed: Two 50-minute class periods
Provided by: Discovery Education (Credit: Jay Lamb, world history and religion teacher, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Alexandria, Virginia; Sandy Lamb, social studies teacher, Thomas Jefferson High School.)
Link: http://www.discoveryeducation.com/teachers/free-lesson-plans/cleopatra.cfm
For more free history lesson plans click here
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