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Differences and similarities between democracy today and in ancient Greece
Differences and similarities between democracy today and in ancient Greece
Compare and contrast the political and social systems of Athens and Sparta
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Athens - Greece During the fifth century of Ancient Greece the city-states of Athens and Sparta represented two very different forms of living. Spartans directed their time towards their military capabilities while the Athenians were interested in comfort and culture. Sparta’s and Athens’ political and environmental differences along with their different views on women caused the two city-states to be very dissimilar. Two major forms of government existed during Ancient Greece: oligarchy and democracy. The government in Sparta was controlled by an oligarchy in which the power was held by a group of five men called ephors. Working below the ephors was the Council of Elders and an Assembly. Male citizens over age sixty could serve on the Council while anyone, male or female, over the age of twenty could be a member of the Assembly.1 Though the citizens had little say in the decisions made by the government, the system worked effectively. It was the oligarchy in Sparta that put a war-like attitude as its first priority in the city-state. Every man in the army fought with a great deal of passion for his country. The beliefs of Sparta were oriented around the state. The individual lived and died for the state. The government in Athens followed a very different course than that of Sparta. Upper class male citizens over the age of thirty were the only Athenians who held any right to vote. The democracy in Athens consiste...
Imagine two countries, so different from each other, that conflicts were inevitable. Athens and Sparta were not countries, however, they were city-states of Greece with many contrasting values. Athens was the city of the arts, reading, and writing. Meanwhile, military was the only thing the on the Spartans’ minds. Athens and Sparta differ in many ways due to their governments, economies, and cultures.
It is surprising indeed that Even today, tyrannies and dictatorships exist in the world when more than two and a half thousand years ago the ancient Athenians had developed a functional and direct form of democracy. What contributed to this remarkable achievement and how it changed the socio-political. scene in Athens is what will be considered in this paper. The paper will have three sections, each detailing the various stages. of political development from the kings of Attica to the time of Pericles when, in its golden age, Athens was at the height of its. imperial power.
One of the most important difference between the two city-states is the type of government they used. Athens was democratic and allowed the citizens to be a part of the law decisions. While, Sparta was an Oligarchy and ruled by two kings. The government was highly exclusive and only open to higher social standings. Athens lifestyle was modern and free, with an open outlook on life. The young men were not forced to join the army, unlike the Spartan boys who had no choice but to join the army. They concentrated solely on military strength and did not venture to the outside world. Another key difference is, how the woman are treated among the city-states. In Athens the woman had very little freedom, they depended on their husbands and could not own any land. But, Spartan women were stronger and could forge relationships with any man they pleased. They did not have to do any chores while the Athenian woman partook in weaving and cooking
Albert is an executive who has two children and a wife who has an affair with Mollie who
Athens and Sparta are both infamous Greek city states. Both could not be more different, yet similar in the way they governed their own city state. Another, main difference was the women’s rights and roles in the system. Athenian and Spartan women both were considered to be second to their male counterparts. Spartan women had more rights than Athenian women. Through, research realizing that the Spartan women were slightly greater role than Athenian women.
Albert is an executive who has two children and a wife that has an affair with Mollie who becomes
Athenian democracy includes participation of all adult, free, male, citizen, made possible for all. If at the beginning and during the thriving period of the Athens democracy the occupations of a state position was considered to be an worthy duty for the citizens, the taking in of ...
In Apology, Socrates disobeys the jury because he has never done the thing they charge against him. Socrates states that he lives an “examined life”, which means the life that “converses about virtue” (p. 14). He spends everything on philosophy and this is the examined life to him. As a dedicator of virtue, he claims himself to be ignorant instead of being arrogant (p. 4). He justifies himself in Apology for his rights and proves his innocence to Meletus’ charges of him for being “a doer of evil, who corrupt the youth” (p. 5).
In the opening of The Apology, Socrates informed the jurors how he intends to address them, what they should pay attention to in his remarks, and what he sees as his greatest obstacle in gaining an acquittal. How does he intend to address the jury? Socrates’ approach towards addressing the jury is way different than what you would see a normal defendant doing. Socrates does not stand in front of the jury and beg that he doesn’t get charged. Instead, Socrates believes that you shouldn’t have to cry and beg for the right to live in court if the defendant has done nothing wrong. The first thing that he says when speaking to the jury was to basically hear him out, and listen to even if he started to talk in his language of habit. He then said they should excuse that because he is seventy years old and has never appeared in court. “I must beg of you to grant me one favor, If you hear me using the same words in my defense which I have been in habit of using, and which most of you may have heard in the agora, and at the table of the money-changers, or anywhere else, I would ask you to not be surprised at this, and bot to interrupt me (Dover p. 19).”
Olympia, Greece Here in the States, if we find a penny from 1964, we think that we have found something extremely old, and will probably save the penny with audacious hopes of its worth skyrocketing in the distant future.? Contrary to our Americanized minds, 1964 is not old. . at all. However, the site of the first Olympic games, dating back to 776 BC, is extremely old. ? Olympia is in the southern half of Greece, near the western coast towards the Mediterranean Sea near the Alpheus (now Alfi) River (Columbia).?
A. Under trial for corrupting youth and not worshiping the Gods in Athens, Socrates takes an attitude that many might interpret as pompous during his trial. Rather than apologise, as Plato’s dialogue title Apology suggests, Socrates explains why he is right and those who accused him are mistaken. He speaks in a plain manner, as if the jury is just another of his followers. Socrates first cites the profit at Delphi for why he behaves in ways that lead to him being under scrutiny of the law. He explains that his friend, Chaerephon, went to ask the oracle if anyone is wiser than Socrates and the oracle responded no (21a). Socrates then explains his interpretation of this being that he is wise in knowing that he does not know certain things, where
This is what Tommy Winfrey, an inmate from San Quentin State Prison, believes: “When society locks an individual away and doesn’t provide some means by which the offender can understand why he/she committed crimes in the first place, then there will be no corrective behavior. I never gained insight from being placed in a cell. Instead I just became defensive and tried to rationalize my behavior. That being said, I believe the success to rehabilitation begins with education. When I began to attend college, I started to discover some things about myself. I began to learn I didn’t have all the answers in life. Vocational training has also given me confidence that I do not have to depend on crime to support myself”. Educating prisoners would be the best way to lower recidivism rates and possibly crime rates. Prisoners need guidance and training so that when they are released they have a plan to follow. If prisons just continue to punish them, they will not learn what they should be doing and go back to their old habits. The must be given an opportunity to heal and learn so they could understand the dynamics in their life which led them to the crime they committed. There are countless interviews of ex-inmates and most of them believe education in prison is a necessity. They want a chance to learn and get a job so that they could provide for themselves. Exposing them to programs will benefit them because the recidivism rate will go down and potentially crime
But there are people who also disagree with changing the way the prison system works right now. As I found in the article called: "Our Money to Educate Minds behind Bars Is a Terrible Thing to Waste" which appeared in the Chicago Now, the author, Masaki Araya, points to reasons why prisons shouldn 't offer educational programs to inmates. "Why should any money, private and public, be wasted on ‘free’ education to those confined behind bars when we already have law abiding citizens, especially families, struggling and barely getting by trying to pay to attend college?" is one of the points Masaki brings up. Masaki believes that these people have no right to be given free education and rehabilitation programs because they have committed crimes
The Apology is Socrates' defense at his trial. As the dialogue begins, Socrates notes that his accusers have cautioned the jury against Socrates' eloquence, according to Socrates, the difference between him and his accusers is that Socrates speaks the truth. Socrates distinguished two groups of accusers: the earlier and the later accusers. The earlier group is the hardest to defend against, since they do not appear in court. He is all so accused of being a Sophist: that he is a teacher and takes money for his teaching. He attempts to explain why he has attracted such a reputation. The oracle was asked if anyone was wiser than Socrates was. The answer was no, there was no man wiser. Socrates cannot believe this oracle, so he sets out to disprove it by finding someone who is wiser. He goes to a politician, who is thought wise by him self and others. Socrates does not think this man to be wise and tells him so. As a consequence, the politician hated Socrates, as did others who heard the questioning. "I am better off, because while he knows nothing but thinks that he knows, I neither know nor think that I know" (Socrates). He questioned politicians, poets, and artisans. He finds that the poets do not write from wisdom, but by genius and inspiration. Meletus charges Socrates with being "a doer of evil, and corrupter of the youth, and he does not believe in the gods of the State, and has other new divinities of his own."
The march towards developing a democratic society is often obstructed with societal unrest due to the influence of the status quo on the instruments of power. Before the rule of Solon, Athens underwent this same rule, as there was much discontent among the social classes in Athens. The society suffered financial disparity that often was the trigger for the war among the rich and poor in the society. This was a major factor that forced Solon into power to institute policies that would see a reformed Athens. By so doing, the society was looking for an avenue that would guarantee democracy and a society that is fair for everyone. The city-state of Athens was the epicenter of the revolution for the Athenian democracy during the fifth century BC. In the Athenian democracy, the electorate voted for the legislation of bills instead of a direct democracy where the electorates are tasked with electing representatives who later developed the bill. Among the first people who made significant contributions to the development of the Athenian democracy were Solon (594 BC), Cleisthenes (508/7 BC), Pericles (495 – 429 BC) and Ephialtes (462 BC). Pericles was the longest serving democratic leader who contributed much development in democracy in the city. This paper will give an account of the age of the Pericles.