Reference no: EM133737087

Discussion Post: Democracy in Ancient Athens

We take democracy for granted today. However, it was not the norm for most of human history. The first democracy, a term in Greek that means "rule by the people," began in the city-state of Athens. Athenians of the Classical period (5th-4th centuries BCE) were proud of the democracy in which they lived, and were interested in thinking systematically about what made their city-state better than the rest. The answer, the Athenians felt, ultimately lay in the connection of democracy and law. Athens did not have a police force, but it was the duty of each citizen to prosecute a crime, whether he was a victim of one himself, or had witnessed a crime. Juries of hundreds of citizens heard each case, and voted for the guilt or innocence of the parties without consulting with each other. The majority determined the case, and then the jury also acted as a judge in determining the penalty.

Historians of Classical Athens are very lucky: ca. 100 courtroom speeches from various Athenian cases survive. These speeches were written by professional speech-writers on behalf of clients, who then delivered these speeches when representing themselves in court.

Task:

For this discussion, please read Lysias 1, "On the Killing of Eratosthenes," written by the Athenian speech-writer Lysias, in defense of Euphiletos, sometime in the late 400s or early 300s BCE. Euphiletos is on trial for killing a man called Eratosthenes, so his situation is quite dire. Please read Euphiletos' defense speech "On the Murder of Eratosthenes"

Next, answer all of the following questions:

From the story of Euphiltos we learn about Athenian perspectives on adultery and other aspects of their legal code. What similarities do you find in the Athenian legal system and our own judicial system in the 21st century? Consider aspects like testimony, jury trials and sentencing.

We also learn from this story about the social relationships between citizens, slaves, and the place of women in Athenian society.

Contrast and compare Athenian society and experience with your own experience in our modern society. For example, have you experienced any negative restrictions due to gender, class, or citizenship status? Do any of these experiences help you understand the struggle of women, slaves, and non-citizens in Athenian society?