Ancient Greek Politics And Politics

The American political system is profoundly influenced by ideas from ancient Greece and Rome. Our ideas about democracy and republican government as well as our values of citizen participation come from these early societies. These cultures thrived thousands of years ago, but the ideas, building designs and governments that they founded still exist in the Western World today.

The Ancient Greeks influenced the Western World in many ways, particularly in government. The biggest political innovation of the Ancient Greeks was the concept of democracy. The Ancient Greeks invented politics as an art of persuasion as opposed to the force and intimidation associated with despotism (Minogue 2). Ancient Greece sought a government where all citizens

The Greek government did not have political parties. They realized that by allowing public officials to be elected by popular vote, most often the wealthiest, most educated and most well-known citizens would be elected. A successful rhetoric speaker could speak on any topic quite convincingly, regardless of his experience or education in that field. This method suggested rhetoric could be a means of communicating any expertise, not just politics. While it could be used to improve civic life, it could also be used as a means to deceive or manipulate the people ultimately causing negative effects on the city. Thus, civic life could be controlled by the one who could deliver the best speech. The United States, on the other hand, is a republic, in which citizens elect educated and experienced officials to represent them, and the representatives do the majority of lawmaking and governing. This is much different from the direct democracies that existed in ancient Greece where citizens could vote directly for measures they supported. In regards to women in Athens, they were inferior to men and their social status was based on their father or

The construction of banks, railroad stations, and other public buildings throughout the United States were modeled after theaters, monuments, arches, and bathhouses of the Ancient Greeks and Romans. The intricate columns are probably the most noticeable similarity between the architectures of then and now. Take for example the design of the Pantheon in Rome and the White House or the Athenian Acropolis and the U.S. Supreme Court building. Another example is the Colosseum in Rome and the many sports arenas found across America that were influenced by this oval design. The architecture of the arch by the Romans is yet another creation, which is found as ceilings in many houses and buildings and as structures for most bridges (Bleiberg 4). The traditions of classical architecture continue to be inspiration for construction and designs all these years