Ancient Athenian Democracy Is Not A Democracy

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.

In Doc D, paragraph two, While in the Doc C chart it explains that Ancient Athens was democratic because according to the article,”It is more democratic by being government by the people instead of government by those elected by the people.” But on the other hand it’s less democratic because of “narrowing down the concept of demos to mean the adult male

Ancient Athens prided itself upon being a democratic society, but was it really? It's true that it was ruled by the people, however only a small percentage of people. Document C states that only 12 percent of people actually vote. And who are those 12 percent? The 12 percent of the whole population that voted was men whose parents were both citizens of the city (see Document B). Slaves, women, and resident foreigners were barred from voting.

The whole of the people, also, what the people want is democracy (Document D). Athens did allow the men to vote, the women, slaves, and metics were not allowed (Document B). The past shows the dictators or emperors have been men and in this case it is the same except with a vote. This voting is a simple assembly meeting to come to a common ground (Document E). This makes Athens classified as not democratic because it is not what all the people wanted.

Ancient Athens was truly democratic because the government let at least some of the people of Athens vote. According to Document B, “The franchise is open to all men who are of citizen birth by both parents. They are enrolled as citizens at the age of eighteen.” (pg.1). In other words, the government of ancient Athens had permitted the citizen men to vote as long as they were adults.

Ancient Athens was truly democratic because everyone should have the equal justice of everyone else because we should all have equal rights. Also, an example is in document A: Our constitution favored the many instead of the few. This is why it is called a democracy. If we look to the laws, they give equal justice to all. I believe that everyone should have the rights to vote, not only men.

A democracy is a government that is run by the people. Greece had a direct democracy. This means all men born in Athens could vote and take part in government. In document 1, (Funeral Oration of Pericles) Pericles stated “Our constitution does not copy the laws of neighboring states; we are rather a pattern to others than imitators

Ancient Athens was not truly democratic because most of the people of ancient Athens could not vote. According to Document C, “Citizen men: 29,900; 12% of the population; Ability to vote: Yes” (P.7). In other words, only citizens were allowed to vote and there were less than a quarter of the people. This proves that ancient Athens was not truly democratic because the government only let the citizens who were men, and women, couldn’t vote at all. This type of government in ancient Athens influenced society because a lot more people couldn’t vote, so they couldn’t express their opinions and weren't happy with the laws, which was a negative thing for the government.

Democracy is a “Government by the people”, Democracy was a central part of Athenian society and everyday life. The Athenian government held Ekklesia or assembly where citizens could go to vote on laws, issues and practically everything affecting Athenian life. They also had The Boule or council and the Dikastiria or the courts that helped make decisions and enforce laws. Through their actions the Athenians established a very early democracy.

What is democracy? Historians have, for a long time, kept this question in mind as they studied the methods and laws of the Ancient Athenians. After studying the given evidence it can be determined that Ancient Athens was not truly democratic.

There are multiple reasons why ancient Athens was not a Democracy in its truest sense. In Document A of the Athenian constitution, it clearly states.. “ Our constitution favors the many instead of the few,’’ however, if that were accurate, why could only twelve percent of the population vote (Document C).The Philosopher, Plato, concluded that women should have the same education and hold all positions in society (Guided Reading Activity 1-2 question 10); this is the very same conundrum that the American government had to face back in the 1920’s (Amendment 19), and it still has not been completely addressed to this day. If the Athenian constitution had favored the many as it claimed than 100 percent of the population should been allowed to vote.

Democracy. A democracy is a government which all the people of the state are involved in making decisions, such as voting for representatives. So was there a democracy that was set by the Athens? Or was it an oligarchy that represents how everyone is supposed to live. Although many say the athens lived a democratic life, the evidence says it itself, they didn’t.

Democracy:is a system of government by the whole population or all of the eligible members of a state,typically through elected representatives. In the Roman Republic they were kind of a democratic because anyone who was in the democratic was allowed to vote. People who were picking the councilmen were able to know who be selected at the end and didn’t tell anyone until everyone was not voting anymore.If people did not live in the democracy they were automatically not able to vote nor would they still be in the democratic society. Democracy of historical of racism was a big deal back in the day because when people heard that there was a big problem

Democracy is a form of government where people choose leaders through elections and social construct that are based on the equality of everyone within the state. It is a form of government were majority and public opinions combine to choose leaders with respect to the social structure of a particular society, taking into consideration the social laws, rules, traditions, norms, values, and culture. Plato and Aristotle tow of the most influential figures in Greek philosophy. Both Plato and Aristotle were big critics of democracy as a poor form of government. Aristotle’s views about democracy hold that democratic office will cause corruption in the people, if the people choose to redistribute the wealth of the

Democracy is a form of government in which all eligible citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Democracy allows eligible citizens to participate equally—either directly or through elected representatives—in the proposal, development, and creation of laws. It encompasses social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination.