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Ancient Greek society
Ancient Greek society
The greek civilization
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In my opinion, I believe that ancient Athens was truly democratic. A democracy is a government in which the people hold ruling power. Ancient Athens was democratic when Pericles gave the speech during a funeral for Athenian soldiers that died in the first year of the Peloponnesian War against Sparta. I know this from reading this evidence: "If we look to the laws, they give equal justice to all. Advancement in public life falls to one’s reputation for good work. Social class is not allowed to interfere with someone’s merit, and poverty does not block the way. If a man is able to serve the state, he is not stopped by the obscurity of his condition." This quote describes that the people who take political office are judged on skills not rank. Another characteristic is that fear makes …show more content…
people abide by the laws and you should favor the many over the few. This describes a true democracy because people hold a ruling power when they take control and leadership of the society. There are people that believe that Athens is not democratic because of the fear they encounter and the uneven wealth for all of society.
Although many people may think that Athens was not truly democratic, I firmly believe that this city was democratic. Another document that describes the fact the Athens is a democracy is in the Athenian Constitution. This was apparent to me through the quote, "At the time that we are speaking, the people have secured their control of the state and established the constitution which exists at the present day. The democracy has made itself master of everything and administers everything by its votes in the Assembly and by the law-courts." This quote tells me that a group of people took over with strength and leadership to create this Consitution that stills holds today. This evidence describes that the leaders have succeeded and are strong in their position. This tells me that the democracy is present because the power of the people is in good hands. However, some people may think that Athens is not a democracy because of the equality. Equality may not be equal for all of the social groups, but the leaders are strong and have a good future, in my
opinion. Also, people will suspect that Athens is bad at having a democracy because they believe that the Consitution might be too strict and harsh. Another document that supports my opinion is in Document C. In Document C, the Athenian population is shown. The point I want to get across is that 12% of the population can vote. I think that Athens is democratic because they are strict for who votes and has power over the polls. Only citizen men over 18 years old could vote which shows that they firmly trust their men to take leadership in their society. Also, they are cautious of the children, women, metics, and slaves. However, women, for instance, may believe that Athens has a bad government because they can't have a say in the voting policy. The voting plays an important part in society because of the leaders people believe will do a good job. Although I believe that Athens is truly democratic, I somewhat trust Professor Hansen's point of view. Porfessor Hansen is a leading expert on the subject of Athenian deomcracy. I learn this through the quote "First, democracy is the rule of the whole of the people, excluding minors and maniacs only. Second, rule was exercised directly by the people, whereas democracy today means government by representatives of the people." This quote tells me that Professor Hansen disagrees with the democracy part because he says they are an oligarchy. An oligarchy is a form of government in which a small group of people have power and control. I also believe that Athens was not democratic because it narrows down the concept of demos to mean the adult male citizens in assembly strictly. I agree with the voting decision, but not the assembly regulations. I believe all men and slaves should have a chance to have a say in the assembly, but not the voting. Some people believe that Athens was truly democratic in this document because of the government being by the people instead of government by those elected by the people. This means that they would rather have the government be people, then the elected chose the people. In conclusion, Athens was truly democratic to me because of the leaders leadership and strength. As you can see, I believe both sides, depending on the evidence determined. I learned a lot, but the most important was that ancient Athens was democratic in a way that is still debatable.
Athens was not truly democratic because there is evidence in both Document C, Document D and Document E to support this claim. Athens was not truly democratic because not everybody had the choice to vote. In Document C, it states "Percentage of Population Able to Vote: 12%." This shows that since only adult male citizens who were over the age of eighteen could vote, which left 88% of the population unable to vote. Democracy is when every citizen has an equal right to vote and takes part in government. This is not the case in ancient Athens, as shown in Document C. Document D states, “It is less democratic by narrowing down the concept of demos to mean the adult male citizens in assembly.” Demos means the
The democratic ideals in ancient Athens are different from the imperialist actions and building the empire that the government and military did good on. The Athenian political body did not stand entirely unified in its support of imperialist action but most of the citizens supported them. The fact that most of the eligible voting people supported imperialist conquests allowed for limited tension between the democratic and imperialist ideas. Athenian democracy centered around the equality of citizens under the law, and freedom of speech, which meant that imperialist action mostly did contradict the principles of Athenian
By the fourth century B.C.E. there were hundreds of Greek democracies. Greece was not a single political entity it was a collection of about 1500 separate poleis or cities scattered around the Mediterranean and black sea shores. The cities that were not democracies were either oligarchies or monarchies (often times called tyrannies). Of the democracies, the oldest, the most stable, the most long-lived, and the most radical, was Athens.
On which they would scratch the name of the person that represented a threat.”(Doc E)This demonstrates why Athens was a democratic society since not only did civilians get to decide on who is in office and who is not. Furthermore, because democracy means rule by the people, and male citizens of ancient Athens voted laws and officials into place.(doc c) This exemplifies how salient the majority's opinion was instead of opinions of just a few rich men .In addition, Athens “....constitution favors many instead of few.”(doc a) Also Athenians had the freedom to do whatever they desire a long as they did not disrupt any other citizen or violate a law. “The freedom which we enjoy in our governments also to our ordinary life…...we do not feel called upon to be angry with our neighbor for doing what he likes. But all this ease in our private life does not make us lawless as citizens.”(doc A) Therefore, this exhibits that this is a democratic government because this is a characteristic that can be seen in democratic governments today. To summarize why Athens was a democracy.Citizens were free to do what makes them jubilant as long as it did not interfere with the laws or fellow citizens. Male citizens could vote and elect the rulers and vote laws into place. These aspects all demonstrate why Athens
Evolution of Democracy and the Athenian Constitution. Democracy is defined in modern times as government by the people. To put that in perspective and better understand all that democracy. entails we must consider its origins.
During the age of Pericles, the ideal form of government was believed to be a government formed by all of the citizens regardless of wealth or social standing. This was known as democracy, literally meaning “ government of the people” [Document 3.] This government favored the many instead of the few. Athens was a direct democracy, meaning every citizen participated in debates. Western civilization used this philosophy of government by many, and created an indirect democracy where citizens elect officials to make and enforce laws.
The Athenian government was a democratic government, which means it was ruled by the people to vote and have a voice in society. The democracy was slowly formed by leaders Solon and Cleisthenes. Solon took over when Athens was in political turmoil. He introduced new reforms to forgive debts, outlaw new loans, free people that
Between the years of 508 BCE and 322 CE, Greece flourished under democracy. However, some question if the flourishing of Athens is due to the democracy that was in place as opposed to other factors relevant in building a successful community. This investigation will examine the effectiveness of Athenian democracy in Greek society. Relevance of Athenian democracy can be seen in foundation of many democracies found worldwide. In this investigation the right to vote, protection of minorities, use of social class, the structure of democracy and how Greek democracy has influenced the world will be addressed. The place investigated will be Greece, specifically the capitol Athens. The effectiveness of Athenian democracy can be seen in social structure, protection of minorities, and right to vote, as well as its structure and influence of other countries around the world.
The Athenians’ democracy didn’t give them strength, it actually hurt them. They were slowed down by the political dialogue and dissidence when compared to their neighbors who were more authoritarian. Their authoritarian neighbors were far more successful due to their willingness to follow a few or one leader. Democracy is a great form of government, but in the case of Athenians, it was actually problematic.
The term democracy comes from the Greek language and means "rule by the people."(Democracy Building 2012) The democracy in Athens represents the events leading up to modern day democracies. Like our modern democracy, the Athenian democracy was created as a reaction to a concentration and abuse of power by the rulers. Philosophers defined the essential elements of democracy as a separation of powers, basic civil rights, human rights, religious liberty and separation of church and state. The most current definition of a democracy is defined as a “government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system.”(Dictionary.com). The American democracy was greatly influenced by the Athenian democracy. The Founding Fathers of the American democracy borrowed ideas from the Athenian way of governing. Presently, Americans live in a democracy that is much different than that the Athenian democracy, and what the Founding Fathers of the American Democracy envisioned. Although there are some commonalities between Athens and what our Founding Fathers intended, there are major differences as well. Differences between the modern American democracy the Athenian democracy and what the Founding Fathers envisioned are size of the democracies, the eligibility of a citizen to participate in the democracy and how a citizen participated.
The Greeks system of democracy was an entirely new concept when it was created, and one that has had lasting affects as it continues to influence present day politics around the globe. Modern day democracies may very well not exist if it wasn’t for the success the Athenians had with democracy. Today we look back at these ancient civilizations and we try to better our current society by learning from their mistakes and building on their success.
An example of a democratic government in ancient Greece occurred in Athens which has been
The first form of democracy was born in “Athens, Greece” (“History of”). Demokratia is a Greek word meaning “rule by the people” (“Rule by”). The “Athenian democracy depended on every citizen fulfilling his role” (“Democracy Is”). The ideology behind democracy has not altered from the Athenian democracy. It is still essential for citizens to participate in a democracy in order to fulfil a democracies main political goal, which is a government by the people.
The principal of Democracy is something that we often take for granted. Webster’s Dictionary defines Democracy as, “a government in which the supreme power is vested in in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.” In the year 507 B.C., the Athenian leader Cleisthenes introduced a system of political reforms that he called demokratia, or “rule by the people.” This system was comprised of three separate institutions: the ekklesia, a sovereign governing body that wrote laws and dictated foreign policy; the boule, a council of representatives from the ten Athenian tribes; and the dikasteria, the popular courts in which citizens
Many aspects of our culture are derived from the ancient Greeks. Without them, the world would be a very different place. Their contribution to the development of political ideas, inventions, and legacies is crucial to our day to day lives. The most influential philosophers, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, were the building blocks of philosophy, as we know it. The Greek philosophers are whom we now call scientists.