How Did Athenian Civilization Influence Greek Civilization

The Ancient Greeks were nothing if not influential. Ever since it 's formation in the 8th century B.C., Greek civilization has impacted many of the world 's greatest thinkers and shaped the landscape of Western Civilization. Aside from their art and philosophy, the Ancient Greeks were particularly interested in politics and, in the case of Athens, a new system of government known as: democracy! Long before the American founding fathers declared their independence from Britain, Athenian citizens governed their own state and voted to solve political turmoil. However, ancient Athens was no perfect twin to American democracy, and being an upstanding Athenian citizen meant more than simply voting and going about one 's business. A standout Athenian

Religion penetrated nearly every sect of Athens, with both public and private ceremonies, performed regularly. Athens was even named after the goddess of wisdom, Athena, and has her home, the Parthenon, as the iconic symbol of the Greek Golden Age. (5) Athenians believed that honoring the gods was crucial to their success both in war and at home, thus upholding correct behaviors and honoring the gods with sacrifices were crucial. (6) Failing to honor the gods or sacrilege their glory was a serious crime for Athenians- and also one commonly associated with the Sophists- who were accused of spreading moral relativism and angering the gods with their "atheism." In fact, many of the charges brought against Socrates accused him of "searching for things unto earth and heaven" and "teaching the aforesaid doctrines unto others." (7) However, Socrates defends himself with his own claims of piety, from the claim that the Oracle of Delphi proclaiming "no man was wiser than he," (8) to telling the jury and accusers that the gods want him to spread his wisdom. He even concludes his speech by saying to the Athenians "I honor and love you; but I shall obey God rather than you." (9) From the sacrificial offerings, to the serious duties towards the gods, any citizen would need to uphold a respectable amount of devoutness in order to fully participate in

The community involvement began when democracy first developed in the early 7th century and furthered by Solon, who began reforming the Athenian justice system and organizing citizens by economic class. (10) Pericles pushed the envelope even further with the radical democracy of the Greek Golden Age, which emphasized direct democracy of the people by voting and selecting jurors to court cases randomly, giving more power to the poor classes and upsetting the elite. (11) However, with more freedom, came more responsibility. As Pericles himself said in his address to the Athenian people, "if a man takes no interest in public affairs, we alone do not commend him as quiet; but condemn him as useless." (12) To the Athenian people, participation in politics and law was not only important, but vital to government run by the people. Pericles even expounded on this by saying "action does not suffer from discussion but, rather, from the want of that instruction," (13) and "we have an exceptional gift of acting after calculating the prospects... whereas other men are bold from ignorance but hesitate upon reflection." (14) Athens was strong because the citizens needed to participate in their government and, in turn, needed to think critically about the decisions they made with each of their