Athenian Democracy vs. American Democracy: 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 longest lasting peace of culture from the romans was there laws. There first laws had to do with the rights of every roman citizens. There law was supposed to be fair to people poor and wealthy. Under the law you were innocent unless proven guilty. The united states use this same idea. There where Greek and roman philosophers who had a big role in the western civilization. Anaximander, he talked about nature. He figured out the size and distance of the sun from the earth just having a small error. He also came up with the idea of evolution.
Ancient Greek made many advances during their time in many subjects still used today. The ancient Greeks advances in these subjects, influenced and contributed to the Western civilization. The Western civilization’s culture and outlook on life was shaped by ancient Greek. Many things the ancient Greeks created were the basis for what we use today, including, architecture, art, dramas, math, science, and philosophy.
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
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,
Influences of Ancient Greece: Government During the birth of the United States, the Founding Fathers were influenced by the way Ancient Greece was governed. Ancient Greece was the first governing body to use a democracy. Our Founding Fathers believed that in order for a nation to succeed and thrive without
Yailene Gaona Professor Clark Government 2305 September 24, 2017 Does the U.S. Have a Democracy? The United States does not have a direct democracy, it is a Republic. Our form of government was created by the founding fathers of America. The founding fathers were educated and scholarly men they were the political leaders of the colonies. These men developed their own ideas about what government should be which influenced the writing of the US constitution. They used their knowledge of past governments and political philosophy to shape the history and government in the United States. Some founders were Thomas Jefferson, author of The Declaration of Independence. George Washington who led the army against the British in the Revolutionary War and who eventually became the first president. James Madison was known for being the father of the constitution because he contributed the most in it, he included the Virginia Plan and The Bill of Rights. Direct Democracy was used by the Greeks in Athens influenced the founders to write the US Constitution in 1788.
“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
We chose to institute a direct democracy instead of a representative democracy. A direct democracy occurs when all of the citizens propose and vote on laws. This is modeled after the Assembly in ancient Athens. In contrast, a representative democracy happens when the people elect a representative who proposes laws for them and a group of government officials vote to pass or reject the law, which is similar to the current government of the United States of America.
A Blast From the Past The way to better the world is to go back to the past and learn the ways of those who came before and learned from their mistakes; sort of like time traveling. When going back in time and comparing the ancient civilizations of Rome and Greece to today, the root of our knowledge is greatly influenced on the minds who have lived at that time. Some may ask which civilization had the most impact on United States and the world? Many would say that the Romans had the most impact on United States and the world and some may contradict and say Greece had the most influence. However, Greece influenced the world and the United States the most in tremendous ways. Greece gave the United States the influence to start it’s first
Abstract In this paper, I intend to show that ancient Athenian democracy influenced western political thought, specifically, western democracies. By influencing such modern day democracies, ancient Greek culture remains a presence in contemporary life. Introduction Approximately 2500 years ago a series of changes and reformations in political thought led to the creation
Much can be said about the Greeks and their contribution to Western Civilization greatly and how they paved the way. The Greeks subsidized Western Civilization greatly, contributing areas of architecture, government, and many more. The Greeks built the Parthenon, a temple dedicated the infamous goddess Athena, who they viewed as there patron. The famous temple has columns and groundwork that characterizes Greek architecture. The architects were concerned with conducting a sense of perfect balance to reflect cooperation and order in the universe. They were the first to think of the idea of democracy, a system in which people govern themselves rather than being ruled by a king; they also valued beauty and imagination.
The democratic system brought Athenian citizens many benefits over time, and had many significant advantages. Before 500 BCE, aristocrats and tyrants dominated most of the government decisions in Athens, and residents had tiny power or authority to vote and affect these decisions (Spielvogel 114). After the world’s first democracy was born in Athens, people held assemblies to vote. This development made citizens’ opinions included into the final government decision, and it allowed citizens the right to make major decisions on political, social and economic issues. Democracy greatly reduced and prevented unbeneficial situations for citizens, and allowed the citizens to affect rules they disagreed with. Moreover, the
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.