Greece 's Impact On The World

Approximately 2500 years ago a series of changes and reformations in political thought led to the creation of the ancient Athenian democracy. Through the changes implemented by Solon and Cleisthenes during the Golden Age of Greece, democracy was born in Athens. Although it was somewhat impractical, exclusionist, and only open to a very small percentage of the total Athenian population, its impact is still felt today. Athenian democracy is widely recognized as the model from which all other forms of democratic rule has evolved from. Through the principles handed down from that Athenian democracy, ancient Greek culture remains a prominent presence in contemporary life, particularly in regard to its democratic policies.

The Athenians democracy was the pride and jewel of their nation. It created confidence, security, and patriotism, however, it also created an arrogant mindset which eventually leads to the downfall of their nation. Pericles states that the Athenian government was unorthodox because it was a government of the whole people rather than a minority (Thucydides 1). In addition, all Athenian citizens had the right to be apart of the government and administer justice. However,

Athenian Democracy was a direct democracy. This meant that all citizens voted and whatever the majority rule was that was the final deciding factor. Majority rule decided votes and leaders. The only

The had prosperous fields of barley and wheat that they prided themselves on. They were the true earth born in their eyes. Athenians were in their own little world since they were isolated from other states. They had superior skill in making pottery and it was the main merchant trade. They had a large gap between the rich Eupatrids and the poor countryside folk. The Eupatrids started to get to big of ahead and finally realized when they were beat by a village of pig-farmers that they could be defeated. They knew reform was needed and appointed Solon to do the job. He knew he needed to give some power back to the working class. He made them debt free and gave them the right to vote. Although this seemed awesome in the beginning, they quickly realized the stipulations. They would soon be in debt again, and they couldn’t voice their opinion about laws or issues that affected their lives. Athens did well after that, although they never left the aristocracy governing. It was indeed a democracy, but it was only for men to spread their opinion and common people to only vote.

The Greeks where the first democracy in the world. There government was made up of six thousand members all of witch where male citizens. They voted on problems that needed to be solved and if a law was to pass a majority vote was needed. Now in the United States also has a democracy. Instead of having six thousand people voting and making the decisions all the people vote on a representative that makes the decisions in the country.

The Athenian government was a direct democracy, meaning the citizens of the city-state take absolute control over any vote. This was the plan for the government to control their people since the citizens

The ancient Greek have also contributed and influenced in the area of philosophy. Many famous philosophers have created the basis for what we use today. For example Pericles, a Greek philosopher, believed that citizens, freeborn men over eighteen, had an equal opportunity to serve their country.

The Western world was highly influenced by the ancient Greeks. The Greeks changed the way the world looks at art, math, architecture, philosophy, sports, and drama. Without the ancient Greeks, the modern world would not be the same. Men such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle changed the way we look at philosophy. The Athenians created the first known democracy, setting the stage for future governments. The Euclidian Theorem and the Pythagorean Theorem among others made mathematics easier and more developed. Even current architecture can be traced back to the Parthenon and other pieces of Greek architecture. The Olympics even started in ancient Greece, creating one of the finest traditions the world has ever known. Without the ancient

In a direct democracy, all the citizens could vote for every single issue. Athens’ direct democracy allowed each citizen to take part in the city’s government. Every ten days, the citizens who wanted to vote would gather on a hill. There, the men debated on issues, voted on laws, and listened to others speak their opinions (Frey 285). Since all citizens could participate in the Athenian government, there were a lot of different perspectives on the same issue.

“Greek civilization is alive; it moves in every breath of mind that we breathe; so much of it remains that none of us in one lifetime could absorb it all.” Ancient Greeks are known to be one of the greatest and most advanced people and have left behind a legacy that helped define the Western civilization. Cultural diffusion helped spread Greek culture all over the world, and its effects can still be felt today in almost every aspect. Greek culture has greatly affected different parts of my daily life including architecture, food, government, inventions, music, religion, and education.

Greek democracy was best developed in the city-state of Athens from where the very word “democracy”, meaning “the rule of the people” stems. People ‘ruled’ by electing officials through lot and making important decisions by majority rule. Democracy was direct, meaning that the Athenians “allowed the whole citizenry to assemble in the central eklisia, or the equivalent today of the main city hall, to vote on important issues” (Makedon 1995). In this sense, Athenian democracy differed from representative democracy that is currently prevalent in most states, in which officials are elected through democratic vote and then given authority to make decisions for the people. In Athens, elected officials were paid, but the pay was very low so that it compared with the wages of the poorest citizens and only covered the compensation of their time and effort.

Ancient Greek philosophy focused on the role of reason and inquiry. It had a meaningful influence on latest philosophy, as well as science. The impact from ancient Greek and Hellenistic philosophers was expanded to medieval Muslim philosophers and scientists, to the European Renaissance and Enlightenment, to the modern technology and natural sciences. Ancient Greek architects strove for the

A successful empire has made a significant impact on the modern world. Greece has impacted the modern world through its sports, for example, the Olympics which used to be just 241 men from 14 countries in 1896 to 27,000 elite athletes from more than 200 countries competing in 28 sports now. Its architecture has influenced the Lincoln memorial, The White House, etc. Also with its government styles. At first only Athens practiced a democratic government and now 123 countries of 192 have a democracy, so that shows how the Greek politics had a big impact on our world. And its discoveries in philosophy, math and science, the most important philosopher in Greece was Archimedes, the founder of the value of pi and every practical idea in some way refers

The Athenian Democracy had many features that made it a successful city! The main reason they achieved a democracy in its purest form was because of their idealized ruler; Pericles. In the Funeral speech, Pericles highlights the value of democracy. He states: “If a man is able to serve the states, he is not hindered by the obscurity of his condition.” This basically says that a man will advance because of merit, not because of wealth or class. He also states that “you must reflect that it was by courage, sense of duty, and a keen feeling of honoring action that men were enabled to win all this.” Here Pericles emphasizes that every man should feel the sense of duty towards the state and that the citizens should uphold the values of democracy

Have you ever really looked into the development of history? Have you ever wondered who contributed to western civilization? The ancient Greeks were perhaps one of the greatest civilizations of the ancient world and are among one of the biggest landmarks in all of world history. The Greeks affected philosophy, math, science, arts, architecture, drama and etc. Many of Greek principles and concepts have since been applied in civilizations throughout much of western history and have had a continuing impact on people in different phases of history. Numerous of philosophers, authors, and artists originated in Greece are believed to have influenced much of the world. There were other empires that were bigger than those of Greece, such as Rome and the British Empire, but none of these cultures produced more great thinkers, philosophers, and artists than Greece.