Ancient Greek History paper

Introduction

Ancient Greek political systems had the virtue of exploring the various ways through which social contracts could exist for the operation of state and society. The Classical Greek period bears a great influence on Western Civilization not because of the literary, philosophical and social heritage borrowed from the era but rather – though not exclusively since we do in fact borrow a great deal from Greek thinking on literature, philosophy and society – from the political systems devised and explored during the era. Aristotle and Plato number among the predominant political thinkers and from their works such as Plato’s The Republic, Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics and On the Lacedaemonian Constitution. From Thucydides we have Pericles’ Funeral Oration while from the Father of Western Law we have Solon’s constitutional/political and economic reforms as outlined and elaborated upon and collectively known as the seisachtheia laws. From the question, “how should I be governed?” a startling realization dawns upon the researcher; the political systems enjoyed today developed from tried and practiced attempts at forging the perfect political system imaginable as can be seen from Plato’s The Republic. Ultimately, we credit Greek societies for proffering modern society social contract systems that would cater for the needs, ambitions and qualities that make up society.

In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle offers a connection between politics and happiness with the explanation that only when one is happy are they content to live peacefully. We read, “The true student of politics, too, is thought to have studied virtue above all things; for he wishes to make his fellow citizens good and obedient to the laws.”[footnoteRef:1] Essentially, Aristotle equates politics with every meaningful facet of life and through this, we gain an understanding of just how important politics was to the Greeks. Plato stated that the ideal state comprised of a republican system whose composition revolved around a meritocratic ideal such as would be imagined from China`s current political system. He proposes a system where philosophers governed the city by virtue of their wisdom even as auxiliaries, soldiers, occupied themselves with the defense of the city as producers worked at economic sustenance.[footnoteRef:2] It is equally important to realize that, like Aristotle, Plato was concerned about the nature of social contracts and the binding principles that determined both relationships and conflict resolution between parties. He defined justice as “To do one’s own business and not to be a busybody is justice”[footnoteRef:3] and like the French philosopher Rousseau, saw justice as the equitable division and protection of wealth. Thucydides, more known for his role in historical accounting than political thinking, also offers us a glimpse at the evolution of Greek philosophy on politics. In Pericles’ Funeral Oration, Athenians laud their political system by claiming it the best system for not only political conquest and war, but also social management. We read, “It is true that we are called a democracy, for the administration is in the hands of the many and not of the few. But while there exists equal justice to all and alike in their private disputes, the claim of excellence is also recognized; and when a citizen is in any way distinguished, he is preferred to the public service, not as a matter of privilege, but as the reward of merit.”[footnoteRef:4] Today, in countries like America, Britain, France and much of the world that has adopted legal and political measures from the Greeks, we celebrate the myriad legal reforms and checks and balances aimed at preserving the unity of communities and states. We owe these developments to thinkers like Solon whose economic and political reforms established the merits by which citizenship was established.[footnoteRef:5] French in “The Economic background to Solon’s Reforms” notes that among the agrarian reforms Solon devised, different classes existed within society such that each possessed different protections and privileges under the law as citizens or members of society.[footnoteRef:6] Most political systems today do not hold to stratified social classes; the French did away with the notion of superior classes of individuals and the rest of the world followed. Nevertheless, we still celebrate Solon for the way his reforms introduced a way to manage factional interests – much like the factions that arose in the wake of the American Revolution – such that it was possible to cater for the ambitions and interests of majorities and powerful factions even as the needs and requirements of the weaker, minority factions were preserved. [1: Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, (Indianapolis, Hackett Publishing Company), 13.] [2: Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, 13.] [3: Thucydides, Pericles Funeral Oration, (Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Human Rights Lbrary), 1.] [4: Thucydides, Pericles` Funeral Oration.] [5: Economou, Emmanouil M. L., and Nicholas C. Kyriazis. "The emergence and the evolution of property rights in ancient Greece." Journal of Institutional Econommics (Cambridge, Cambridge Univeristy Press) 13 (1) offers insight into the various agrarian, social, economic and political difficulties faced by the early Greek cities and the methods developed to deal with emergent tyrants and other political factors] [6: A. French, “The Economic Background to Solon`s Reforms” The Classical Quarterly, Vol. 6, Issue 1/2. pp. 15]

Annotated Bibliography

Aristotle. 2000. Nicomachean Ethics. 2. Translated by Terence Irwin. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company.

Aristotle was a major and influential Greek philosopher celebrated for his works on philosophy, society and politics. The reason we include him in the research concerns his thinking on the connection between morality and politics considering our question on the merits of Greek political thinking. In principle, Aristotle’s works revolved around the management of social systems, but his importance comes in through the way he connects the different aspects of life such as property ownership, marriage, legal systems and others by describing them as political subjects.

Economou, Emmanouil M. L., and Nicholas C. Kyriazis. 2017. "The emergence and the evolution of property rights in ancient Greece." Journal of Institutional Econommics (Cambridge Univeristy Press) 13 (1)

Source traces the relevant emergence and evolution of the Greek period. It analyzes the different economic structures and property rights attendant to and protected under acknowledged law. It describes the different economic times of the classical Greek period and how the influence of the government and democracy influenced the governance of the people.

French, A. 1956. "The Economic Background to Solon`s Reforms." The Classical Quarterly (Cambridge University Press) 6 (1/2): 11 - 25.

Solon’s political reforms may have placed a political burden on society by establishing a legal basis for the preservation and enhancement of certain political practices such as the social classes. However, French notes that the same legal reforms reinforced the protections under the law such that the more powerful members of society would be obstructed from taking advantage of political and social chaos to pursue selfish interests. This article`s worth is demonstrated for it distinguishes the dangers from uncertain political and legal systems encountering chaos. Additionally, it demonstrates the virtues of established and accepted legal systems as opposed to ad hoc law since long after Solon’s death, the Greeks retained aspects of his reforms in the governance of people.

Plato. 2004. Republic. 3. Translated by C. D. C. Reeve. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company.

Like Aristotle, Plato was concerned with the way people lived. In many ways, the way a person lives is inextricably connected to the way society is governed. Plato’s value comes in the provision of a moral and ethical basis for the political system he envisioned. Moreover, in his writing we see elements of the meritocratic system of government currently practiced in China as well as the basis for the republican systems of government practices in Britain and America.

Thucydides. 2017. "Thucydides, Pericles’ Funeral Oration." University of Minnesota: Human Rights Library. Edited by Richard Hooker.

Thucydides value comes in his demonstration of the way the Ancient Athenians regarded their way of life. The justifications they offered for war and economic policies offers insight on the nature of political systems as an ethos aimed at distinguishing the unique qualities of a society. Incidentally, it also offers a confirmation of Solon’s political reforms for the Athenians inherited much of the political systems devised and perfected through the ages. Lastly, as a primary source on the social and political systems of the ancient Greeks, it offers a view into the political rhetoric used to re-affirm loyalty and obedience to the state since it allows us to perceive how the Athenians thought of their community and government.

Bibliography Aristotle. 2000. Nicomachean Ethics. 2. Translated by Terence Irwin. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. Economou, Emmanouil M. L., and Nicholas C. Kyriazis. 2017. "The emergence and the evolution of property rights in ancient Greece." Journal of Institutional Econommics (Cambridge Univeristy Press) 13 (1): 53 - 77. Accessed October 25, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1744137416000205. French, A. 1956. "The Economic Background to Solon`s Reforms." The Classical Quarterly (Cambridge University Press) 6 (1/2): 11 - 25. Accessed October 26, 2018. https://www.jstor.org/stable/636962. Plato. 2004. Republic. 3. Translated by C. D. C. Reeve. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. Thucydides. 2017. "Thucydides, Pericles' Funeral Oration." University of Minnesota: Human Rights Library. Edited by Richard Hooker. April 24. Accessed October 27, 2018. http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/education/thucydides.html.