Athenian Democracy and Meritocracy

Athenian state and Meritocracy To what finis did the Athenian country put up up to its ideology of being a meritocracy, and to what expiration was agency still in the hands of the squiffy? Athenian democracy was an evolving process in the 5 th century B.C. The absorption of major power in the governmental cheek would change intimately from when the first seeds were set until the voting citizenship was spread out and new leading emerged towards the end of the century. democracy was non instituted in the name of military man rights scarcely for practical(a) purposes and it is necessary that we picture at it in this light when makeing whether capital of Greece was a meritocracy and whether the cockeyed still held right smart power in Democratic Athens. It is sure enough true that Athenian majority rule, like altogether systems, on idea differed come acrossably to how it was implemented. In this essay I bequeath fight that Athenian majority rule was larg ely winning in implementing a state democracy in which, to a large extent, there were no diaphanous discrepancies over who was favoured in matters of society and the state. I allow for bespeak that the Athenian penning largely unbroken the city as a meritocracy, devising its citizens equal out front the state in matters of legality and governmental power. thus far, I will also lease the limitations of Athenian land and to what extent definite functions whitethorn rescue throttle its success. I will conclude that the power of the wealthinessy was in near respects limited by the grammatical construction of the state solely was held back to near extent by the inevitable advantages that sustain from wealth. I will mainly be arguing that whatsoever limitations there were, they were non enough to cast off a negative effect on democracy as a whole. The Athenian Democracy allowed that further adult males of Athenian ancestry were fictitious character of the democ ratic system, which overall do up around 10-20% of the demos. Slaves, freed slaves, children, women and metics (foreigners in Athens) were excluded. It is obvious from this that to pronounce Athens as a meritocracy in the modern virtuoso is absurd. In this essay, I will consider Athens as a meritocracy in terms of the rights and opportunities of those who argon citizens, non from those who arent and will thereof consider to what extent Athenian Democracy worked the way it was conjectural to. The pie-eyed did not hold power to the extent that it harmed the democratic process. The wealthy sure did have legion(predicate) advantages compared to the poor, but this is not necessarily whatsoever comment upon Athenian democracy just an inevitability that those with wealth will be able to touch more than those without. The wealthy had power but not to an extent that was greatly change to the state. When defining wealth, I will consider Aristotles exposition as including money , land, substantial estate, furniture, livestock and a high graphic symbol and quantity of slaves (Rhet. 1361a12-16). there was most in spades a world-shaking wealth divergence amongst Athenss citizens whereby the leisure screen out (those who didnt ingest to work as a gist of family fortunes, nobility etc.) made up round 5-10% of the populace. This class prohibition was certainly earn by the lower classes who often showed their offense at the wealthy. However despite this inequality, they did not see this as particularly affect when it came down to the political and legal powers of the people, as this inequality was grudgingly accepted. Wealth discrepancies were not seen as cheating(prenominal) as potentiality legal or political barriers that may have touch on the citizens. (see Ober ch.5)