1. Athenian democracy

2. Vocabulary Philosophy: means love of wisdom
Oligarchy: political regime were only a small amount of people govern
Direct Democracy: when citizens participate directly in governmental decision making
Politics: governing as connected to the debate between those in power and those who want power
Heritage: an inheritance.

3. Free Time During the 5th century BCE Athens was a prosperous city
The slaves and metics took care of most of the work
This left the citizens( especially the rich ones) with a lot of free time
So they would go to the Agora and have discussions
These conversations promoted ideas and reflection
This led to progress in philosophy and politics
Free Time

4. Politics Athens left behind an important political heritage
Athens was a direct democracy
Government was made up of 4 parts:
1) Ekklesia: where all citizens voted on laws by show of hands, elected magistrates and strategoi and decided on peace or war
2) Boule; drawn by lot they administered the city and prepared laws to be voted on
3) Strategoi: Military leaders that were elected by the Ekklesia
4) Heliaea: court of 600 members drawn by lot and served for 1 year
Politics

7. How it worked The Ekklesia met 4 times per month on the pnyx hill
Not every citizen attended every session
It depended on their work or the Agenda posted at the Agora a few days before the assembly
Voluntary attendance guaranteed the citizens would take part in the debates
There needed to be 6000 citizens for the debate to begin
How it worked

8. Philosophy Citizens spent a lot of time observing nature and thinking
They questioned themselves and the world and wondered about man’s place in the Universe
The people who answered these questions were called philosophers
They believed that by trying to answer these questions they could learn to govern and live wisely
They were interested in the human condition, society and how it worked and education
Socrates, Plato and Aristotle were among the greatest philosphers of this era
Philosophy