How Did Athens Contribute To Athenian Democracy

Athens and Rome were two powerful civilizations. Their impact still influence us today. About 500 BC, people were no longer considered subjects. They are now called citizens, and had to meet certain responsibilities. If you meet the requirements then you could be granted citizenship. Only certain people could be granted citizenship, and it was to be honored and protected. Athens had a better system then Rome, because the Athenians where more cautious and gave people equal chances for obtaining citizenship. They also did ostracism, and believed in The Old Oligarch.

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.

Athens was not truly a democracy. The definition of democracy states that it is a system of government by the whole population. In ancient Athens the only people that were eligible to make decisions were citizen men. Women did not have the right to vote which contradicts the definitions of democracy. Only twelve percent of the Athens population were able to vote meaning that eighty-eight percent were left powerless. Metics were not even eligible to vote and they were a key part of Athens economy.

Today, much of 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 years in the future. Prior to Athens’s collapse during the Peloponnesian War, it truly had an efficient and very organized system of government.

During the fifth century bc, Athens had war with Persians, the result of this war had make establishment of democracy to Geek. Acropolis of Athens is an important

democracy is a form of government in which people come together and make laws for the benefit of the country for example, here in the united states people have the right to vote, have equal rights, pursuit of happiness and practice in any religion of your choice. ancient athens did not have a true democracy. In ancient athens Women, free foreigners and slaves were excluded from voting, the government body could decide if you were a citizen or not. Also, women weren't allowed to vote unless they married a citizen. Therefor there constitution did not favor democracy.

In doc A paragraph two, I think that The Ancient Athens Democracy is democratic because it claims in the document that the Athens leader clearly respects his soldiers. This is noticed because he made a speech at a funeral for all of them that had died in the first year against Sparta’s soldiers.The leader did this to respectfully show his appreciation about how they fight for their democracy.

Facts and information lead to the fact that Athens truly was a democracy. First of all, what is a democracy? A democracy is a form of government that the people of that state or country run. To prove that ancient Athens actually was a democracy, here are three pieces of evidence to prove so.

The Greeks have city states and they were the first democracy, America adopted that idea. The city states had rulers who would protect the people by shielding them in castle like structures with high walls during war. A different idea America adopted from Greece is boys would be enlisted into the military when they became a man and America used the draft in some wars. Something that is different however is Greece unlike America could choose to keep their children or to possibly drop them off the nearest cliff. Despite the differences from Greece, America learned and gained democracy, literature, and history. The history recorded by the Athenians was about the lives they lead and encounters they had. Athenians are one of two types of people

Athens and Sparta were two powerful city-states, different from each other where Athenian democracy focused on economic advancement, while Sparta oligarchy focused on military force. Democracy is a system of government where citizens have the right to vote, whereas oligarchy is a system of government where only a group of people is in control and only their opinion or decision that were taken into consideration. Leading to the thesis statement that people are better served by Athenian democracy than the Spartan oligarchy, supported in three evidence points. Firstly, Athenian democracy allowed citizens participation in government that gave them freedom to vote and take part in legislation. Secondly, the Athenian government provided Athenian men better education, by being taught how to read and write to reach their academic advancement. Lastly, the Athenian democracy’s contribution to Athens military advancement that protected its citizens.

After the wars, Athens emerges as the center of all activity amongst each city-state in Greece. One of the key features within the Athenian society was the arrangement of public assembly and the rule of the people, democracy. In the assemblies, any male citizen could actively vote

One of the most influential Greek city-states was Athens. They used a democratic arrangement of government, and the involvement in democratic operation was restricted to citizens. Social, economic, and political situations impacted art; writing, sciences, and art thrived in fifth century BCE. Athletes, artists, and great thinkers transpired out of ancient Greece. The origination of diverse art formations demonstrated the political and economic

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.

Athens was the intellectual center of Greece. It was one of the first city-states of its time, and is still known as one of the most famous cities in the world. It was named after Athena, the goddess of wisdom and the city's patron. In 508 B.C., Athens became one of the first societies in ancient times to invent democracy. Democracy came from the Greek words, demos, meaning people, and kratein, meaning to rule. This form of government was usually held in a meeting place, which the Athenians called the Assembly. Here the citizens of Athens met monthly and discussed the affairs of state. There were no decisions made by government without first asking the Assembly.

The last Olympic swimmer just touched the wall and the race has ended. Cameras are replaying every single movement from the race and a winner has been clearly decided. Just as these Olympic swimmers will gain a medal for placing, ancient Athens had numerous accomplishments of its own. Athens “prosperity … was due in large part to its stable and effective government” (SOURCE 1). When analyzing the history of ancient Athens, is easy to see how the accomplishments of a democracy, Greek philosophy, and Greek literature all shape Athens.