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• What is democracy

  From of government where power to make decisions is in hands of people / majority
• The assembly

  Gathering of Athenian citizens every 10 days on Pynx

  Expected for evryone to attend

  Discuss and vote political matters
• How were votes taken at the assembly

  Anyone Present could speak and votes taken by a show if hands on
• Why couldn’t people, attend assembly + consequenve

  Hard for poor people:

  • Lived far, so expensive to travel
  • If they didn’t, would be whipped and shamed
• What democrat was Athens

  Direct democracy - issue was voted by the people
• Qualities to be illegible to vote in Assembly

  • male
  • fully Athenian
  • 18+
  • free
  • serve 2 years in military
  • pay all taxes
• The Boule

  • Most significant group
  • Decided what to discuss
• How many people in Boule, how was this selected?

  • 500
  • 50 men chosen randomly by lottery fro, each ten tribes
  • Citizen cannot refuse to serve
  • Citizen can only hold this post twice
• Why is selection of Boule good?

  More fair

  • Different people from each class can contribute
  • People more politically engaged
• The archon

  • Good knowledge of law, so acted as judges
  • Each was responsible for important events
• How many archons were there

  10

  • One from each tribe
• Senior archon

  • One of the year would act as head of state and president of assembly
• State slaves jobs in assembly

  Maintained order in the assembly
• Ostracism

  • Once a year assembly asked if it wants to be held
  • Each person takes part of broken pot (ostrakon) and wrote name of person
  • Name with most voted exiled for 10 years
• Ostracism meaning

  Not very common

  Encourage people to not make stuff up

  Only if citizen starts to dominate politics
• How did women gain power

  Impact of social status

  Access to powerful people

  Bribery, blackmail

  Education - art of rhetoric
• How did Athens elect

  Sortition
• Why was the assembly fair

  Because it allowed people of different classes to make a change, not just high status and monarchs
• What were the two purposed of comedy

  Religious - performed for the honour of Dionysus

  Political - educate audience = didactic

  Ridiculed people who were cowardly

  Depicted situations really facing the city (war)
• Common feature of Athenian comedy

  • Role reversals
  • Characters mock audience member s
• Why was theatre so important for Athens

  Encouraged self criticisms in audience
• Farce

  Buffoonish comic with crude characters and impossible situations
• summary: Aristophanes Assembylwomen

  Comedy play depicts Women taking political power in Athens

  Aristophanes presenting this as farcical

  Problem Athens facing was real, but solution was a joke
• Men’s speech vs women’s speech

  Boys and Hetairai would have lessons in law, philosophy

  Aristophanes smocks women speech

  Stereotype that woman are poor speakers, cant be persuasive