The Peloponnesian War: A Model Of Athenian Democracy

In Document A, it distinctly states “ Our constitution favors the many instead of the few,’’ however if that were so, why could only twelve percent of the population vote (Document C). Plato, a wise philosopher, concluded that women should have the same education and withhold all positions in society (Guided Reading Activity 1-2 question 10). A dispute that even the American government had to fix back in the 1920s (Amendment 19), and still this day, has been addressed. As shown, if the constitution favors the many, 100 percent of the population should vote.

Those who didn’t like democracy were mainly rich nobles who were most likely afraid of losing power and influence over the people. Or, as Document 6 gives insight to, they were unhappy during the Peloponnesian War. Document 6 states, “‘Nothing could be found better than the one man, the best man in governance,’” (Document 6). It comes from Herodotus in 415 BC, and he shows a strong preference to a sole ruler, rather than the many people that share power during a democracy, along with Document 11. Document 11 is important to include because it is not only from the Golden Age, but it was also in the heart of the Peloponnesian War. It could be due to it being in the middle of the Peloponnesian War, or it could not, but the timing of it does seem to mean Herodotus, and possibly others, disliked the democracy of Athens because they were in the middle of a civil war that they ultimately lost. Others merely criticized the democracy and its freedoms, as Isocrates, the author of document 3. Document 7 is similar, as its author clearly shows their displeasure towards the people that are not nobles having the ability to influence the government. As it is well supported through several documents, it is clear that not all Athenians were happy with a democratic

Democracy in Athens While history in Athens can get quite murky, there is an age long argument on whether or not Democracy truly existed in Athens or not, while many back the idea of “No way! Athens was not a democracy!” This document is here to show you how Athens was one of the democratic powerhouses of Ancient Greece. You can always argue two sides of an opinion but to face the facts collected here you can see how the democratic beliefs in Athens may have well influenced today’s ideas on our democracy still used in the government today and all over the world.

The aristocrat Pericles was responsible in every way for the development of the Athenian democracy. Pericles was one of the rare men who didn’t just accept the world’s conditions, but he tried to shape it to an image in his mind, the image of a perfect, or almost perfect democracy.# He was a high government official in the Athenian democracy during the years 446-429 B.C., which is now called the Periclean Age. He wasn’t the founder or inventor of democracy but he came to its leadership 50 years after it started while it was still growing or developing. Under his rule, Athens developed a direct democracy which allowed many citizens to take part in the day-to-day government affairs. Athenian power and influences increases with this.

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,

A Greek tragedy was a drama addressing serious themes such as love, betrayal, war, and hatred. Greek tragedies often centered around a tragic hero. Each Greek hero was gifted with intelligence, wit, and strength, but cursed with a tragic flaw. Many Greek heroes inherited the flaw of hubris, excessive pride. The Peloponnesian War, a war that spanned twenty seven years between the Spartans and Athenians, pertains to the concept of hubris because of how the Athenians and Spartans responded to their shared hostility, and the actions of the Athenians after the truce in 421 BC.

Aristotle once said, “In a democracy the poor will have more power than the rich, because there are more of them, and the will of the majority is supreme.” To make democratic ideas work to their advantages, the people of Athens had to vote for superiors, rather than simply observe. Like other forms of government, democracy has its strengths and its weaknesses. It was very organized and fair, giving people rights and freedoms, and participation in the rule of the city. Though, there were some negatives.

The Peloponnesian War pitted the Athenians against the Spartans. The Peloponnesians’ were an alliance of city-states controlled by Sparta. These two powerful city-states became locked in a struggle for dominance of the eastern Mediterranean area. The roots of the conflict and in particular this expedition is highly complex. As Thucydides says in his history of the war, the underlying cause was Spartan fear of Athens' expansive power. But, the triggering event was Athens' aggressive behavior towards Corinth, an ally of Sparta.

Throughout the Ancient Greek world, there have been many wars and standoffs. However, there has been only one which changed the course of Greek history forever; the Peloponnesian War. Caused by the growing tension between Athens and Sparta, it came and left, leaving only destruction in its wake. The defeat of Athens in the Peloponnesian War caused the downfall of Greece, and the end of the Classical Age.

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.

The Greek society was a direct democracy with people voting on the issues themselves instead of representatives voting on their behalf. Any male citizen over the age of eighteen was allowed to vote. Like the Romans, the Greek government was divided into separate parts. The Greek government consisted of an assembly, council, and courts, with each requiring a different number of voters present. The people all gather and vote on issues by hand, and this is the simplest form of majority rules. The role of the people is extremely important in how the society and state is governed and run. This early form a democracy was detailed by Pericles funeral oration during the Peloponnesian War. Pericles was an eminent Athenian politician who states in regards to the government of Athens, “Its administration favors the many instead of the few; this is why it is called a democracy (Pericles, “Funeral Oration”, pp. 2)”. Here, Pericles states that the people have all the power and their opinion is highly valued. Likewise, the Romans valued the people’s opinions so highly that they entrusted with them rewards and punishments, vital aspects that held the society together. Pericles also states, “…nor again does poverty bar the way, if a man is able to serve the state, here is not hindered by the obscurity of his condition (Pericles, “Funeral Oration”, pp. 2)”. Here is the essence of democracy, every man no

The form of democracy that Pericles put into effect was not favored by everyone. This is mainly because the people did not believe that the uneducated should have a say in any way. They thought that the poor may use this power against the rich. There was a point in time when the Athenian democracy experienced difficult phases and the rich blamed the poor for this misfortune. Some believed that giving the poor power was illegitimate.

The Peloponnesian war (431–404 BC) was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens against the Peloponnesian led by Sparta. Thucydides famously claims that the war started “because the Spartans were afraid of further growth of Athenian power, seeing as they did have the greater part of Hellas was under the control of Athens”. The two main protagonists from opposing sides Lysander and Alcibiades had the most influential impact on the end of the war.

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 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.