The word democracy derives from two Greek words; ‘demos’ which means ‘the people’ and ‘kratein’ which means to rule. Democracy is defined as a government, by and for the people because ‘power is not of a minority but of the whole people’ (Thucydides). Originally democracy meant rule by the common people. In the sense, and even before the beginning of modern class society, it was very much a social class affair. This meant that power should be in the hands of the largest class: the poorest, least
The city of Athens in Ancient Greece went through various political structures that aided in governing the lives of its citizens. In the beginning of the sixth century, the city adapted elements of democracy in which power was given to the people as a whole and everyone was ruled under law. Under this political structure, one primary individual did not govern the city, but instead, many citizens took initiative to become political leaders and help maintain order in Athens. Citizens such as Pericles
To describe a society’s constitution as a democracy, or dêmokratia, implies a sense that the people who live in it have a degree of power over the key decisions made within it. In Athens in the Classical era, Athenian citizens asserted their full combined power to take control of all the city’s affairs, and the polis ran under the banner of dêmokratia. The combined Athenian male citizenry, the dêmos, wielded power over the making and administration of laws, the distribution of official powers, economic
group of individuals. Given the title that the writer has, it makes sense that he would disagree with a democracy. While Pericles praised Athenian Democracy for allowing all men to have a voice and The Old Oligarch condemned democracy for giving a voice to those not wise enough to have one, both views exhibit advantages and disadvantages of democratic government. Pericles described democracy as favoring many citizens instead of a select few, or each social class instead of the upper class only
Rhetoric was a major factor in the development and maintenance of the Athenian government and was used by many in order to gain power and ascend in politics. The ascendance of the great demagogues in Athens during the time of the Peloponnesian war was heavily influenced by their rhetoric and ability to effectively guide the Athenian democracy. The democratic government was composed of two groups: “public speakers […], those who made proposals and publicly argued for or against political projects
the world’s governments have converted to democracies. In the Ancient World, there was only one truly notable example of a democratic society: The City-State of Athens. This is actually the birthplace of democracy, where instead of the rich or powerful ruling, it was the citizens of the city-state that held the power. This advanced way of government was so effective and well structured, it even laid the foundations for the development of our own democracy, right here in the United States, over 2,000
Citizens, specifically males, had the right to participate in politics and had freedom of speech. They were becoming a democracy. Plato’s Apology of Socrates and Funeral Oration of Pericles shows us the different views both Socrates and Pericles had on Athenian democracy. Socrates and Pericles views of Athenian democracy are on opposite ends of each other. Socrates describes Athenian democracy as being unjust and unwise, however, Pericles describes it as having equal justice. Socrates believes that the
Before democracy, Athens was a city-state no different than any other. A few powerful, aristocratic families controlled all governing power. Most of the population held little or no role in the political life of the city. Athenians changed this, and created a system where participation was encouraged and opinions were valued. While some other Greek cities were also setting up democracies, none were as stable or well documented as that of Athens. The reason for why the Athenians moved toward a democratic
The Question of Democracy: Athens Democracy’s inception on a complex, workable level is attributed to Greece and specifically the city-state Athens, but there is question as to whether or not Athenian democracy was indeed a democracy in its purest form or at all -- at least during the Age of Pericles. One can investigate the matter through Thucydides’s claim that under Pericles, Athens was not a democracy, responses to this claim, and speeches spoken by Pericles himself. After one critically
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
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
The term democracy comes from the Greek language and means "rule by the people"(Democracy Building 2012). The democracy in Athens represents the precursors of 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
freedom meant not being subject to anyone else, the way to guarantee this was to go conquer others. The Athenians could create a democratic system that would suppress the emergence of a tyrant, however, freedom also depended on the Athenians not being subject to others in external affairs. The building of relative power on the international field was the most certain way of guaranteeing freedom for Athenian citizens. It was a common Greek view of freedom to include freedom for oneself as the right to dominate
Ancient Greece’s politics during the time of Socrates’ life [469BC – 399BC] was one that is similar to politics in the United States today. It was one of democracy, where the people ruled the state, where citizens were able to vote on policies to be implemented, and retained certain rights. Democracy is seen as one of the ultimate ideals that modern civilizations strive to create or preserve. It is a system of governance that is supposed to allow extensive representation and include as many people
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. 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
Democracy in Greece were mainly the Athens democracy which started to spread across the cities in Greece in the ancient era. This democracy which existed in Athens from 508 until 322 BC. Their democracy was direct democracy where there were equal rights and voting power, rules and leaders. Even though were no clear constitution but they perform well in terms of equality of law, freedom of speech, voting rights and the participation in governance. The end of democracy in Greece (Athens), was an
importance to Athenian democracy. The funeral oration helped the people of Athens to establish their constitution in Greece. Pericles’ “Funeral Oration” emphasizes that Athenian democracy is original, the public vs private regarding law, and liberalism as three basic elements for a future modern democracy. Pericles emphasizes the importance the element that Athenian democracy is original compared to another other country. According to Pericles, the reason that Athenian democracy is original is
Athens was one of the key cities at the time of Ancient Greece. Some might argue that Athens was a great democracy but I respectfully disagree. I believe that Athens was not truly a democracy because of the citizen obligations, voting rights, the standards that it was an oligarchy, and the system to vote people out of the assembly. According to the Athenian Constitution written by a Greek philosopher named Aristotle it states, “ If the courts decides that he has no right to be enrolled as a citizen
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. Over the course of history several nations
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