response to attached files
Ancient Athenian society was both traditional and innovative. One of the ways in which Athens stands out across time is through its commitment to a particularly unique model of democracy. Although this kind of democracy is clearly very different than ours, scholars have often discussed several parallels between Athens and the contemporary United States. One point of comparison is that Ancient Athens, much like the United States today, was both a democracy and an empire.
Please write ONE to TWO paragraphs on how you think (based on what you’ve read, seen, and heard so far) Athenians might have negotiated the tensions between democracy and empire. How do you think Americans today negotiate these tensions? Also, what are some of the major similarities and differences between the two societies. Be sure to use quotations and/or examples from the videos, readings, and mini-lectures.
https://youtu.be/4iOoulX_K6I
https://youtu.be/G6uA4Gpj3hE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iOoulX_K6I&authuser=4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6uA4Gpj3hE&authuser=4
Solution Preview
Democracy and Empire in Athens
Athens would qualify as both a democracy and an empire due to the activities by the leadership in the country and the extent to which the people were capable of practicing their freedom. While giving his speech on the western tradition, Eugene Weber of UCLA provides significant insight on the activities by Athenians, in their quest to develop their knowledge on the human environment (HIstory Buff). In particular, sophists had enough liberty to question factors such as the relationship between law and worship of the gods, to the extent that such questions got so uncomfortable for society, leading to the unjust trial of Socrates. A society in which people experience enough freedom to question the authority would be no different from a democracy, in which case people have freedoms to question the authority, considering their role in putting such authority to power
(598 words)