Democracy in Ancient Greece
Class XXXX, Section XXXX, Fall, 2012
The term democracy was invented by ancient Greece, and it came about through the system of involving all the people in ruling of their land. The ancient Athenian Greeks have been credited with developing democratic rule. Though their governing system may not have been very democratic as present day democracies, it allowed participation of diverse social class of people. This paper will attempt to answer the following questions, what are the conditions underlying the rise and fall of democracy in ancient Greece. At what point in the decline of Greek democracy do Socrates and Plato come in, and why were they advancing a return to aristocratic elitism rather than enthusiastic supporters of direct democracy?
Conditions underlying the rise and fall of democracy in ancient Greece
Ancient Greece was a made up of loose small independent states that were known as poleis, it is estimated that Greece had about 1000 poleis (Smitha, 2011). Majority of these poleis were ruled as oligarchies. The two main oligarchies states were Sparta and Athens. However, these two had different democratic systems, at least at some time in their history.
internal unrests and conflicts were the main driving force of democracy in many of Greece poleis, particularly in Sparta and Athens (Smitha, 2011). We shall use Athens city as an example to examine the conditions underlying the rise and fall of democracy in ancient Greece, which were similarly in other Greece cities.
Athens city bordered the ocean and therefore actively engaged in maritime trade. However, it also heavily depended on agriculture just like Sparta. Like other poleis, Athens was...
Ancient Greece Greek History The Impact of Alexander and the Development of Democracy The development of democracy in Greece came about due to many factors, each playing a significant role in a slow process. It can be traced back to the election of Solon and his impact on the polis of Athens. He created a four-tier class system, awarding political privileges to those in each class (Ober, 1998). While more say was given
Ancient Greece developed eastern side Mediterranean a series loosely connected City-States. Here seeds modern science. Greek philosophers / scientists, Plato Aristotle (Hellenic Era) wealth devote time study natural phenomena, abstract ideas mathematics, astronomy..ID Ancient Greece: Overview Ancient Greece is often called the cradle of civilization because the city-states of Greece, most notably Athens, gave birth to concepts that still inform modern life, such as the significance of empirical, rationalist science and the
When Plato was constructing his ideal civilization in the Republic, those citizens fittest to rule were of the philosophers' class, while the lowest orders of society were deemed to be the craftsmen and tradesmen. Although Greek was in actuality a democracy, these common men, in Plato's estimation, were considered unworthy to participate in government. This reflects a type of snobbery typical of ancient Greece. Even scientific disciplines that emphasized thought
At the top were the native Spartans who could trace their ancestry back to the original inhabitants of the city. These were the individuals who could serve within the army and enjoyed the full political and legal rights of the state. The second class of citizens was the perieici, who were foreign people who worked within the city and for the Spartans and served as a buffer to the
Athens and Sparta were two most powerful states in Ancient Greece. Athens was known for its undying focus on infrastructural development while Sparta had an unmatched military prowess. As such, Sparta was the most powerful Greek state. Although the two states are very close geographically, they do have contrasting lifestyles, governance structures, military strength and economic systems (Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Greece. 1998). Government Unlike Athens, which was a democracy government, Sparta
Birth control which is also known as fertility control and contraception, describes the devices or methods that are used to prevent an egg from getting fertilized by the sperm and thus preventing pregnancy[footnoteRef:2]. Provision of birth control and planning a pregnancy is referred to as family planning. Safe sex implies the use of condoms; both male and female, does not only prevent unwanted pregnancies, but also prevent the spread of
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