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Example research essay topic: Greek City States Form Of Government - 1,853 words

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The Influence of the Greeks on American Democracy Tyranny is the rule of one man to the advantage of the ruler, oligarchy to the advantage of the rich, democracy to the advantage of the poor. -Aristotle Democracy: a form of government that makes political decisions directly exercised by the whole body of citizens, under procedures of majority rule. This type of democracy is know as a direct democracy, however the form of government that citizens exercise the same right not in person but through elected representatives is known as a representative democracy. Today in the United States of America we have a representative democracy in which we appoint representatives through election. The founders of democracy in Athens exercised decisions through a direct democracy in which all male citizens were allowed to have direct influence on the decisions.

Although in the United States today we accept democracy as a form of life it had its early beginnings in the city-states of Ancient Greece. The form of government known as democracy had its early roots in Ancient Greece but its influence has a direct connection with the type of government we have today in the United States. The Greek city-states of antiquity did not always live a lifestyle with the cooperation of democracy. The civilizations of Greece passed through many stages of government. In the 8 th and 7 th centuries the government was known as an oligarchy. An oligarchy is the rule of the city-state by a selected few usually consisting of wealthy landowners.

These representatives made decisions based on their own ideals without the consideration of the people. Decisions were made not with the interest of the majority but with the interests of the few. Since the oligarchy was primarily run by wealthy landowners, the interests of the poor were often ignored. However, tensions began to arise between these wealthy landowners which left the majority of the public in a state of discontent and fury. This discontent of the majority of the people made way for the form of government called a tyranny. A tyranny is known as one man who seizes absolute power of the city-states.

In Greek civilizations a tyranny is someone who seizes power of the King without proper royal descent. The citizens accepted the change because it provided them with inspiration that was lost during the tensions arising within the oligarchy. (MacLaren, 80) The tyrants of the Greek civilization flourished during the 7 th century because of their ability to introduce this new form of governing. The tyrants appealed to the citizens because they displayed themselves as military innovators or entrepreneurs who united their economic dominance into a new form of political power unseen in the past. Many tyrants of the Greek culture, similar to the those of the oligarchy, had incredible wealth. Two idealistic tyrants were Croesus and Polycrates whom were above their fellow people with their extreme amount of wealth. Blinded to their individualistic motives, the Greek people accepted many powers of which the tyrant awarded himself.

Tyrants were able to award their friends and punish their enemies in any way they wished, and possessed nearly an unlimited sexual freedom. (Mcglew, 26) To the tyrant his rule is a blessing; to the city it is a curse. And in each case the reason is the same: the tyrant can do what he pleases. (Mcglew quoting Connor, 26) Herodotus notes many acts of sexual freedom among tyrants in his works. Periander had relations with his deceased wife while Cambyses participated in incest with his own sister. The philosopher Plato records such acts of sexual freedom when he writes of the tyrant, Games, who wore a magical ring. The ring provided him with the power to take without fear whatever he desires from the agora, go into any house and sleep with whomever he wishes, kill or release from bonds whomever he wants and do other things that gods do to men. (Mcglew 26) The tyrants of antiquity acted in their own interests without the consulting of others.

Aristotle represents tyranny in Politics as a perversion that serves the personal advantages of the ruler alone, or a despotic monarchy of the political community or a, despotic rule conducted according to the rulers personal judgement. (Mcglew, 27) The ability of a tyrant to have complete control over a city-state created an image within the eyes of the citizens as a character of horror. Thus, the power and vision of a tyrant often led him to being overthrown which ultimately led to the establishment of a democracy within the Greek city-states. The overthrowing of a tyrant was a logical conclusion to of his own self-representation, and the ability of his subjects to show resistance against him. When people revolted against their masters power they did so to not to simply destroy power of the tyrant but to appropriate the power in their own interests. (Mcglew, 5) The citizens of Athens devised a plan to overthrow the tyranny that haunted the city-state by making their own constitution. The Athenians insisted that power could only remain in the middle if citizens were political equals. (Mcglew, 149) The novel idea of having the citizens be political equals was the motive behind the creation of the democracy in the Greek city-states. The Athenians are credited the inventors of democratic liberties and were renowned for their great love of political and personal freedom.

In Athens there was an equilibrium reached between the centralizing and unifying ideals of individual and sate, and freedom and order. In Athens new democratic state there was cooperation between individual freedom and authority of the state unseen in the past forms of government. The new freedoms extended to include all parts of society including social, economic, ethical, religious, judicial, and political freedoms. The freedom that occurred in 5 th century of Athens was one mainly of self-determination, independence, and self-sufficiency.

People lifestyles had changed from the tyrannical ways of dominance to the freedom of living undisciplined without the control of anybody. (Els, 7 - 8) As first an experiment in rule by and for the people, a democracy was something new in a culture full of traditions of absolutists, tyrannical, and oligarchic forms of government. Democracy meant strength, the authority, and the exercise of power and control by the citizens who belonged to the community of the state. This included all people of the state regardless of class, rank, standing or wealth. The control of the state was in the hands of the people and decisions of the state were reached by the mass of people. Democracy represented a form of political life of the self-governing and included every citizen of the city.

In comparison to other form of ancient government a greater amount of the Athenian population were citizens with full political rights allowing more people to take part in the full scale of civic activity. The most important aspect of a citizen was that both parents were citizens but also extended to include distinctions such as birth of constitutional classes and military and socio-economic groups. In modern standards, the Athenian democracy was still exclusive, but in a time-period when no group of citizens could be excluded from political rights was unknown. Athenian democracy functioned within the limits of an exclusive relationship and freedom but political rights were reserved for the male citizen. Within the Athenian democracy there was no separation of class, even the lowest and poorest citizen shared in freedom and power of the government. People argue that since a majority of the population was part of the lower class that a democracy favored and benefited the poor the most.

With this new right, many citizens took an active part in their state affairs and ruled. The citizens were using their political power and rights personally without the ability of representatives making decisions on their behalf. Aristotle proves the difference between old forms of government and the new democracy in his writing in Politics. (1279 b 34 - 80 a 4) The argument seems to show that a number of the governing body, whether small in oligarchy or large in a democracy, is an accident du to the fact that the rich everywhere are few, and the poor numerous. Therefore the real difference between democracy and oligarchy is poverty and wealth. Wherever men rule by reason of their wealth, whether they be few or many, that is an oligarchy, and where the poor rule, that is a democracy. The Athenian democracy was a stable and well-functioning state that guaranteed law, order, and government.

Individuals were able to shape their lives according to personal choice. Although the Greeks are often credited with the discovering of democracy, people often overlook their direct connection with formulation of politics. Politics is the art of reaching decisions by public discussion and then of obeying those decisions as a necessary condition of civilized social existence. (Finley, 13) Politics is the act of reaching decisions by public majority. The Greek representation of politics was the Assembly. Athenian democracy was a direct representation of the values of the citizens.

Attendance in the Assembly was open to every citizen that represented a government literally by the people. The Assembly, which had the final decision on war and peace, treaties, finance, legislation, public works, or on any governmental activity, was an outdoor mass meeting of as many thousands of citizens over the age of eighteen who chose to attend on any given day. The Assembly met frequently throughout the year, forty times at a minimum. Simple majority of those present, and everyone present was given the ability to participate by taking the floor reached the act of making decisions.

The administrative side of the government was divided among a large number of annual offices and a Council of 500. The council was chosen by lot and was restricted to one or two one-year terms, with the exception to the board of ten generals. The presidency rotated daily to prevent any type of continuous leadership within the council. By the middle of the 5 th century council members and jurors were paid per diem, which was less than a normal mans pay for a mason or carpenter. As it entered the 4 th century attendance to the Assembly was paid on the same basis. (Finley, 16 - 19) The Council of 500 in the Athenian democracy has a direct correlation with the legislative branch of government in todays democracy.

The House of Representatives and the Senate are councils that meet periodically throughout the year and vote on such issues. However, the House and Senate seats are obtained through elections not by lot or appointment. Similarly to the Athenian form of government the seats are rotated on yearly basis. New candidates are eligible for the seats in this branch of government.

The Athenians rotated presidents of the council often to avoid the usurpation of power by a single individual. This is paralleled in our democracy through the system of checks and balances between the executive and legislative branches. The legislative branch has to keep the executive branch in check and make...


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