democracy, Athenian
democracy, Athenianfrom 508/7 to 322/1 BC is the best known example in history of a ‘direct’ democracy as opposed to a ‘representative’ or ‘parliamentary’ form of democracy.
1. Ideology
Today democracy is invariably a positive concept, almost a buzz-word, whereas dēmokratia in ancient Greece was a hotly debated form of constitution, often criticized by oligarchs and philosophers (see philosophers and politics) alike. The Athenian democrats themselves, however, connected dēmokratia with the rule of law (Aeschines 1. 4–5) and, like modern democrats, they believed that democracy was inseparably bound up with the ideals of liberty and equality (Thucydides 2. 37). Democracy was even deified, and in the 4th cent. bc offerings were made to the goddess Demokratia (Inscriptiones Graecae 22. 1496. 131–41).Dēmokratia was what the word means: the rule...
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