ipl-logo

How Did Athens Get The Right To Participate In Public Life

771 Words4 Pages

In Athens. People obtained the right to participate in public life, by the following: First, it was necessary that the ones who wanted to participate in the public life, should be free-born adult males, wealthy enough to call the attention of other wealthy men, in the council. In Sparta. In similarity to Athens, free-born males could join the public offices. There was the possibility of the rulers to come from a noble family (the kings), the Ephors, which were rich men who participate in the council, but also poor men could participate and the Gerousia, the most powerful branch composed by wealthy and old men. In Athens: According to Brand (n.d) “the richest men, known as '500 bushel men' for the value of their annual income in bushels of grain, included aristocrats and non-aristocrats” (p.29). These man could …show more content…

Also, there were the Horse man, which were a kind of rich man whose product, horses, were expensive and useful for the army, so they could be part of the public offices if they were willing to serve the military offices and the army. The last ones were a sort of middle class, or the 200 bushel men, which worked producing bushels, which would grant them the right to take minor political offices (Brand, n.d). In Sparta: Since they were a military society, only military men could take part in the offices, with the exception of the kings who were illegible because of their families, but regardless of that, they also must come from the army. That goes for the Ephors, and the Gerousia too, each one with their specifics. The Gerousia members were 60 years old The members of the Assembly had to be 20 years old. In Athens: the amount of wealth the individual had, if he was free, native-born males and adult. The individuals should be wealthy enough to be a part of the different branches of the

Show More
Related
1229 Words | 5 Pages

Unlike the Athenian democratic system the Spartans believed in Oligarchy, meaning ruling by a few. Sparta came to reach the height of it power after defeating rival City Sate, Athens in the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC) (Bailey). The oligarchy was a governmental system composed by a limited number of elite citizens such as: Ephors, five magistrates with executive and judicial privileges, elected by assembly; two kings, army leaders and chief priests; gerousia, council of thirty elders comprise of men at least sixty tears old, twenty-eight of which were elected by assembly and includes two kings; assembly of citizens, men over thirty years old, they do not vote, but shout acclamations supporting the decisions of the oligarchy above (Bailey). The Spartan governing system led to a military based society where male children from the age of seven would start going to a special educational institution, which was military based. This led to Spartans being warrior like people unlike the Athenians.

Read More
1356 Words | 6 Pages

In a true democracy, nothing is random. Everyone should have a vote and the right to voice their thoughts. With this system they have put in place, people’s roles in the government are completely arbitrary. Thus proving, Athens was not a true democracy because government roles were picked at

Read More
941 Words | 4 Pages

Each tribe now consisted of members of the wealthy, middle, and lower class. The population of Athens was divvied up into ten different tribes. The members in each tribe were forced to work together, and thus the loyalty was to a member’s tribe and not to their social class. In many elections the citizens voted by tribes, returning a tribal official who might also serve the central government. Cleisthenes set up the Council of 500 to make the Athenian government more flexible.

Read More
933 Words | 4 Pages

The Helots were the lowest social class in the Spartan society, and the inferiors were neither slaves nor citizens. In the economic class, the kings commanded the Spartan army when sent out by the people. The Assembly had the power to declare war and choose the king to the lead the army. The Spartan women were trained to be fit companions,

Read More
1701 Words | 7 Pages

Pericles popularity is well known for harnessing that mob power to steer Athenian society, while Thucydides is known for claiming weaker demagauges (rabble rousers) that followed are what lead to Athens eventual downfall (Brand, 2013, p. 34). Sparta, being a oligarchy, had a much clearer set of public offices consisting of two kings, a weakly empowered assembly of all male citizens, powerful elders over age sixty called the Geriousia, and five annually elected magistrates called Ephors whose powers often contested the kings during their one year terms (Brand, 2013, p. 9). Much like the Metics of Athens, Periokoi were foreigners of ATHENIAN VERSUS SPARTAN GOVERNANCE 4 Sparta who could gain much wealth filling tradesmen roles, but would never participate in Spartan governance (Brand, 2013, p. 3). The only people allowed in public office were native born Spartans who met specific requirements.

Read More
1597 Words | 7 Pages

The Spartan government consisted of a king, council of elders, and the Ephors. The Ephors were citizens of the state who represented and were elected by a majority of the population. Every citizen was eligible to be elected as an Ephor. Compared to the United States government, the Ephors are likened to the legislative branch of government because they “determine suits about contracts” (Aristotle). Noble people made up the council of the elders who were essentially the judicial branch of the government because they were the “judges of homicide” (Aristotle).

Read More
379 Words | 2 Pages

Athenian democracy only lasted around two centuries, and the system was introduced in 507 B.C by an Athenian named Cleisthenes. The democratic political system of Athens was often referred to as the "demos", which translates to "the people". This meant that it was governed by the rule of the people of Athens. The three most important parts of the system included the ekklesia (the Assembly), the council of 500 men that represented the ten Athenian tribes (The Boule) and lastly, the popular courts (The Dikasteria) that were filled by citizens and jurors. Although Athens was democratic, this did not mean that there was equality.

Read More
1783 Words | 8 Pages

“The heat in the streets was stifling. The stuffiness, the jostling crowds, the bricks and mortar, scaffolding and dust everywhere, and that particular summer stench so familiar to everyone who cannot get away from St. Petersburg into the country” (Dostoevsky 2). In the beginning of the novel, Raskolnikov begins to describe St. Petersburg, which is the setting of the novel. This description is not only included to convey a better understanding of the novel, but also to show a cause to why Raskolnikov feels the way he does at this moment in the novel.

Read More
504 Words | 3 Pages

Unlike the Romans, Athenians had a strict but fair schedule that allowed them to enjoy citizenship equally. Equally, hard workers have brought Athens power just as much as hereditary leaders. According to Document B all citizens should be allowed to speak their opinion and have a share in election because of the hard work they do to make the city powerful. Athenians allowed poor and common men to win a position in government which was a transition from the wealthy having power to everyone having power.

Read More
875 Words | 4 Pages

This group of people only included white male citizens, meaning that slaves, foreign born residents, women and some men who hadn’t obtained citizenship couldn’t vote (Doc D). This completely contradicts the all-inclusive concept of direct democracy that the Athenian government preached so frequently. To have a powerful and lasting empire with great prosperity you must have a series of strong leaders. The period of prosperity in Athens was so short lived because they only had one strong leader, Pericles. After Pericles died Athens could not defeat Sparta in the Peloponnesian War and also couldn’t hold the truce that was signed in 421 BC which allowed Sparta to gain overall victory in the

Read More
1292 Words | 6 Pages

In this essay, I would like to answer and discuss the following questions: How did the people in Athens and Sparta obtain the right to participate in public life and make decisions affecting the community? Who held public office? What rules governed the selection of public office holders? How were two city-states similar in their governmental structures and how did they differ with each other? For the Spartans the right to participate and made important decisions from the entire community were only exercised by the adult and legitimate male citizens of Sparta.

Read More
1134 Words | 5 Pages

Pericles, a key political figure of 5th century Athens states, “Our constitution does not copy the laws of neighboring states; we are rather a pattern to others than imitators ourselves.” The Athenians had no desire to follow what appeared as mediocre government, the Athenians pushed for the best form they could find. Arete, for Athens, meant every person had a voice in politics. Politics embraces the reason of the mind as well as the emotion of the heart. Therefore, the very essence of a good human being would lie in being a politically active person.

Read More
1520 Words | 7 Pages

Symbolism is the mere thought that a person or inanimate object can represent a larger idea or emotion. For example, if on is given the image of a bear; such things come to mind like bravery, courage, and ruggedness. Some may even think about either the state of California or the U.S.S.R in World War II. This is one of the few aspects in literature, that allows it to be interpreted in many different ways. In similar ways, authors use this tool as an indirect way of communication to the reader.

Read More
1255 Words | 6 Pages

Each Polis had a patron deity and was named after their patron deity, Athens’s deity being the Goddess of Wisdom and of War, Athena. Athens was one of the largest city-states in Greece, the city-state that came second to Athens being Sparta, but it is one of the most well-known city-states due to having features of its own that were not seen in any other city-states and one other feature that it gave us that is still present today, known as Democracy. An example of one of these distinctive features, according to Polis, was introduced during the classical period, “In about 508-507 B.C., Cleisthenes prevented Athenian aristocrats from controlling the assembly by limiting citizenship” (“Polis”, 1998). By doing this, citizenship was no longer controlled by the rich, making it easier to become a part of Athenian society. But Cleisthenes did not stop there, proposing even more reforms, as according to Polis, “He also instituted the Council of 500, whose members were chosen by lot from male citizens 30 years of age or older” (“Polis”, 1998).

Read More
456 Words | 2 Pages

the idea of representative government began to take root in some city states, specifically Athens. Athenian reformers moved toward democracy, rule by the people. In Athens citizens participated directly in political decision making. However there were limitations on citizenship to ensure that only the most rational people were able to vote. Through the construction of democracy in Athens, equality of all citizens became greater, and the city would become the top democracy of all the democracies.

Read More

More about How Did Athens Get The Right To Participate In Public Life

Related Topics

Open Document