How does the development of democracy in Athens relate to your life?

Answer 1

Not a all other than as interesting history. The representative democracy of today is radically different from the Athenian direct democracy, and it came to us through several centuries of slow changes of European government in the second millennium CE.

Answer 2

First, you have to remember that the 'birthplace of democracy' story was conceived and spread by 19th century British poet Lord Byron, who in this way tried (successfully, too) to drum up support in Great Britain and France for the Greek uprising against the Ottoman Empire of which it had been part since around 1550.

In reality, Athens was an olicharchy, a city-state run by a small group of powerful families. Even during the relatively short period that the people were consulted on a limited number of issues during usually carefully pre-arranged meetings, the powerful families saw to it that all executive jobs - and so, the decision whether to do anything at all with a meeting's decisions - firmly remained in the hands of their family members.

So how did all this affect the everyday lives of normal citizens? They might be invited a couple of times a year (only the men, of course) to participate in those mass meetings. Before those meetings, a citizen would be informed by the aristocrat under whose protection he lived what the desired outcome was.

If we also consider jury duty a 'democratic' right: he would be called up a few times a year to be at the same time jury member and judge in court cases. A court case had at least 201 jury members/judges, so chances were that you would be called up with some regularity.

But while Athens was never the hotbed of democracy is was made out to be since the 19th century - it never exported even a semblance of democracy to any of its many colonies - it was a hotbed of free thought, philosophy and science. It produced the great majority of ancient Greece's still-famous philosophers and scientists.

Answer 3

For the first time, ordinary citizens could participate directly in government.

Answer 4

For the first time, ordinary citizens participate directly in government

Answer 5

Gguy