The Civilization of the Greeks Chapter 1 Section 2

Discussion Question  1. What is a democracy?  2. In a Democracy, who makes the rule?  3. In a Democracy, who ultimately has the power?

A. The Polis: Center of Greek Life  1. Polis  where people met for political, social, or religious activities  Polis was made of 3 groups:  1) citizens with political rights (adult males)  2) Citizens with no political rights (women and children)  3) Noncitizens (slaves and resident aliens)  Citizens had rights with responsibilities  2. Tyrants  Ancient Greece was ruled by tyrants  rulers who seized power by force

 The Greeks began to turn against the tyrants  3. Democracy and Oligarchy  Democracy = Rule by Many  Oligarchy = Rule by a few usually wealthy elite

B. Sparta  Focus on Military  Government  An oligarchy  A council existed made up of two kings and 28 citizens over the age of 60  The council voted on issues

C. Athens  1. Gov’t and Economy  Early, Athens was ruled by a king  Economic problems  Poor farmers could not pay their debts and were sold into slavery  2. Solon  594 B.C.  cancelled all land debts and released farmers from slavery

 3. Cleisthenes  In 508, brought democracy to Athens  Created The Council of 500 -The council prepared legislature, debated it, and voted on it -This is called Direct Democracy  4. Pericles  Paid salaries to people in public office  Art and architecture flourished under Pericles

What do we know about Ancient Greece?  “After this event there was contention for a long time between the upper classes and the populace. Not only was the constitution at this time oligarchical in every respect, but the poorer classes, men, women, and children, were the serfs of the rich… The whole country was in the hands of a few persons, and if the tenants failed to pay their rent they were liable to be haled into slavery, and their children with them. All loans secured upon the debtor's person, a custom which prevailed until the time of Solon, who was the first to appear as the champion of the people. But the hardest and bitterest part of the constitution in the eyes of the masses was their state of serfdom….”  Aristotle 350 B.C.

 “Our constitution is called a democracy because power in the hands not of a minority but of the whole people. When it is a question of settling private disputes, everyone is equal before the law; when it is a question of putting one person before another in positions of public responsibility, what counts is not membership in a particular class, but the actual ability which he man possesses. No one… is kept in political obscurity because of poverty. And, just as our political life is free and open, so is our day-to-day life in our relations with each other… Here each individual is interested not only in his own affairs but in the affairs of the state as well.”  Pericles, 431 B.C.

Question  Explain the following statement:  “The unexamined life is not worth living”  Socrates

D. The Greek Love of Wisdom  Philosophy in Greek means “love of wisdom”  1. Socrates  Believed that goal of education was to improve human understanding  “The unexamined life is not worth living”  His teaching method is known as the Socratic method (question and answer)  Placed great emphasis on reason  Was accused of corrupting the youth and sentenced to death

E. Plato  One of Socrates students  Author of The Republic  His ideal state would have 3 groups in society  1) Philosopher Kings would rule because they were wise  2) Warriors would protect society  3) The masses who were driven by their desires  Plato also believed that men and women should have access to all positions in society

F. Aristotle  A student of Plato  He focused on analyzing and classifying things based on observation and investigation  He reasoned that there were 3 good forms of government: Monarchy, Aristocracy, and constitutional government  He thought constitutional government were the best

G. The Greeks and Western Civ  Greeks were the principal source of western culture  Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle established the foundations of Western philosophy  The rational method of questioning was introduced by the Greeks  Literature is derived from the poetry and drama of ancient Greece  Our government is derived from the Greeks

Plato’s Theory of the Human Soul  Soul divided into 3 parts:  1) Intellect: Highest Part of the Soul  Voice of reason  2) The Will  Supports the intellect  3) The Desire or Appetite  Acts on impulse  In a perfect functioning soul, the Intellect controls desire with the aid of the will