Athenian Democracy

Throughout history, some of the most radical minds have equated democracy to anarchy, arguing a government by the people is no government at all (Jones). There have been a variety of different perceptions and functions of the word democracy over time, yet the word seemingly has only one official meaning. Properly, democracy can be simply defined as a system of government ruled by the people (“democracy, n”). Nevertheless, the numerous perspectives, connotations, and adaptations in regards to democracy’s meaning over time have assisted in transforming the definition of the word into what it’s known as today. To many, democracy is an irreducible concept; however, it continues to be interpreted in an array of methods, ranging from various forms

In the fifth and fourth centuries BCE, Athens had one of the most complex and developed governments of its time, a direct democracy which gave a voice to some who might have otherwise remained silenced (Cartwright). Unlike American democracy, whose indirect nature equates it to a republic, all male Athenian citizens could voice their opinions during the monthly assemblies, and cast a vote with a simple raise of the hand (Blackwell). Despite the harsh regulations prohibiting women, slaves, and non-Greek foreigners from speaking and voting during these assemblies, many, including University of Michigan political science professor Rob Mickey, still believe the Athenians laid the basic foundation of democracy as its known across the western world today. While components of democracy had existed prior to its rise in Ancient Greece, the word only came to prominence after the Golden Age of Athens had begun (“Democracy”). A society with a newly established emphasis on knowledge and thinking needed a revitalized government, in order to “separate themselves from the barbaric behaviors of neighboring city-states and empires” (Mark). Although the word referred to the direct democracy Athenians championed, it also developed underlying connotations, only some of which were favorable. The word had come to imply superiority in the mind of many Athenian Greeks, and was a symbol of their

Throughout much of the twentieth century, Americans continued “to praise democracy, glorifying the word beyond a justifiable level” (Mickey). In a post World War II era, the United States was beginning to flex its unassailable strength in the face of foreign powers, specifically the Soviet Union. To communism-fearing Americans during the Cold War, democracy came to be understood as a safe haven from the “savages” of the east and as an irrefutable patriotism towards the stars and stripes on the flag (NPR Staff). This new transformation of democracy changed its meaning once again, now describing a blind patriotism towards the United States. It developed a prideful connotation, and came to represent American unity against foreign enemies. Americans learned to idolize the word, many of whom choosing to remain ignorant towards the democracy’s true