Greece: The Democratic Establishment vs The Militaristic Society

Athens and Sparta are among the most iconic names within the ancient Greek world. Each city state created a vast among of history and established large names for themselves within the history books. However, if both city states managed to get their names known in this way, how alike were their actions? How is the militaristic Sparta different from the democratic Athens? Each civilization had a wide variety of differences within the way they managed themselves. These differences included the governmental structure of the city state itself, the social ladder imbedded within the society, and the daily life of the citizens.

Athens had a government based within the foundation of the political system known today as a democracy. This is not a direct relationship however, as their system was an example of direct democracy, and not the representational democracy, particularly popular with today’s larger populated nations. The statue “Athena Parthenous”, was a symbol of ancient Athens and its greatness, as it was known to be one of the first Democratic societies, it was introducing a new form of life to the world, one revered by many of its onlookers, and its inhabitance. Its governmental structure was based within 3 branches of government, each of which citizens could have their voice within. These branches consisted of: an assembly of citizens within which any citizen could take part within, a council comprised of 500 citizens over the age of 30 chosen by a lottery, and an elected assembly of 10 members. The first 2 groups held the responsibility for voting for or against bills that were purposed. This was done through using either a red or black stone, each color representing a vote: yes or no. The third group known as the ...

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...hens? Each city state has a very unique way within their practices of their governmental structures, their social ladders, and the daily life of their citizens.

Works Cited

Armento, Beverly Jeanne. A message of ancient days. 21st century ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 2001. Print.

"Athens." Ancient Greece and Rome: An Encyclopedia for Students. Ed. Carroll Moulton. Vol. 1. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998. 81-84. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.

Rhodes, P. J. "Ancient Athens: Democracy and Empire." European Review of History: Revue Europeenne D'histoire 16.2 (2009): 201-15. Print.

"Sparta." World Eras. Ed. John T. Kirby. Vol. 6: Classical Greek Civilization, 800-323 B.C.E. Detroit: Gale Group, 2001. 148-151. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 19 Nov. 2013