Year 9
Unit 2 - Classical Greece
Lesson 4 - Athens - The birthplace of democracy
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What this excellent introductory film about Athenian democracy and try to answers the questions below as you go. Good luck. |
The word "democracy" combines the elements demos (which means "people") and kratos (which means "force" or "power"). How many people made up the demos of Athens is hard to say. During the 4th century BC, there may well have been some 250,000–300,000 people in Attica. Citizen families may have amounted to 100,000 people and out of these some 30,000 will have been the adult male citizens entitled to vote in the assembly.
The Assembly: Greek democracy created at Athens was a direct, not a representative democracy: any adult male citizen of age could take part, and it was a duty to do so. Every citizen had the right to attend and speak at the Ekklesia or Assembly, which met about every ten days on a hill called the Pnyx. The assembly had to debate any proposals by the Council and then pass or change or reject these proposals by a show of hands. At least 6,000 had to attend a meeting of the assembly to create a quorum where laws could be passed.
If not enough citizens turned up, special police were sent out to round up more citizens and make them attend. The police normally rounded up such citizens using ropes which had been dipped in fresh red paint. Citizens had to pay a fine if they were found to have red paint on their cloaks. The standard format was that of speakers making speeches for and against a position followed by a general vote (usually by show of hands) of yes or no. There were no political parties and likewise no government or opposition. In effect, the government was whatever speaker(s) the assembly agreed with on a particular day.
Voting was by simple majority. One unusual power given to the Assembly was the power of ostracism. This was a way of getting rid of unpopular or corrupt politicians. On one day in the year, a vote of ostracism could be held in the Assembly. Each citizen was given a fragment of pottery called an ostrakon. On this he could write the name of any politician he wished to see punished. If a politician's name appeared on more than 6000 pottery pieces, that politician was ostracised He had to leave Athens for a period of ten years.
The Council (boule): Every year, 500 citizens were chosen by lot to become Councillors. Allotment was random and shared the work of government throughout the whole citizen body, engaging them in the crucial democratic experience of, to use Aristotle's words, "ruling and being ruled in turn". The allotment of an individual was based on citizenship rather than merit or any form of personal popularity which could be bought. Allotment therefore was seen as a means to prevent the corrupt purchase of votes and it gave citizens a unique form of political equality as all had an equal chance of obtaining government office. They had responsibility for the day-to-day running of the state. They also drew up proposals for new laws; though these proposals had to be passed by the Assembly before they could become law.
In conclusion, to be an Athenian citizen meant to participate in the day to day running of the state. Those not interested in participating in politics were considered to be idiots. The modern word 'idiot', comes from the ancient Greek word ἰδιώτης (idiōtēs), meaning a private person, a person who is not actively interested in politics.
The Assembly: Greek democracy created at Athens was a direct, not a representative democracy: any adult male citizen of age could take part, and it was a duty to do so. Every citizen had the right to attend and speak at the Ekklesia or Assembly, which met about every ten days on a hill called the Pnyx. The assembly had to debate any proposals by the Council and then pass or change or reject these proposals by a show of hands. At least 6,000 had to attend a meeting of the assembly to create a quorum where laws could be passed.
If not enough citizens turned up, special police were sent out to round up more citizens and make them attend. The police normally rounded up such citizens using ropes which had been dipped in fresh red paint. Citizens had to pay a fine if they were found to have red paint on their cloaks. The standard format was that of speakers making speeches for and against a position followed by a general vote (usually by show of hands) of yes or no. There were no political parties and likewise no government or opposition. In effect, the government was whatever speaker(s) the assembly agreed with on a particular day.
Voting was by simple majority. One unusual power given to the Assembly was the power of ostracism. This was a way of getting rid of unpopular or corrupt politicians. On one day in the year, a vote of ostracism could be held in the Assembly. Each citizen was given a fragment of pottery called an ostrakon. On this he could write the name of any politician he wished to see punished. If a politician's name appeared on more than 6000 pottery pieces, that politician was ostracised He had to leave Athens for a period of ten years.
The Council (boule): Every year, 500 citizens were chosen by lot to become Councillors. Allotment was random and shared the work of government throughout the whole citizen body, engaging them in the crucial democratic experience of, to use Aristotle's words, "ruling and being ruled in turn". The allotment of an individual was based on citizenship rather than merit or any form of personal popularity which could be bought. Allotment therefore was seen as a means to prevent the corrupt purchase of votes and it gave citizens a unique form of political equality as all had an equal chance of obtaining government office. They had responsibility for the day-to-day running of the state. They also drew up proposals for new laws; though these proposals had to be passed by the Assembly before they could become law.
In conclusion, to be an Athenian citizen meant to participate in the day to day running of the state. Those not interested in participating in politics were considered to be idiots. The modern word 'idiot', comes from the ancient Greek word ἰδιώτης (idiōtēs), meaning a private person, a person who is not actively interested in politics.
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To conclude, watch this rather more complex explanation of Athenian democracy. As a result of our recent lessons hopefully some or even most of what Dr Bettany Hughes says will make sense! |
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Activities
1. Explain the meaning of the following words in the context of classical Athens: democracy, assembly, quorum, ostracise, council, lot. These words are all in bold in the text and many were also explained in the films. 2. After first discussing in groups, fill in a table of similarities and differences between ancient Greek and modern democracy. |
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