Lesson 4: Athenian Democracy
Anti-democratic elements in Athens
The impression that many people have nowadays about the Ancient Greeks is that they were die-hard freedom-lovers. Such ideas are propagated not only by those who are ignorant, but even by many teachers of the Classics.
The reality is that a very large number of Athenians were violently opposed to democracy.
Opposition to the ideals of democracy was to be found mainly among the wealthier aristocratic classes, as it was they who had lost most with the institution of the democracy in 508 BC.
Many of the most well-known classical authors speak disparagingly about the democratic system, and some even criticise it in no uncertain terms.
Among the famous classical critics of democracy are Plato, Thucydides and Aristophanes. All of these authors came from relatively well-to-do backgrounds, and their criticisms are sometimes tinged with an irritating snobbishness.
In fact, in 411 BC, while the Peloponnesian War was raging, there was a ‘counter-revolution’ in Athens which did away with the democracy and replaced it with an oligarchic form of government.
(This did not last for long however, and was quickly replaced with a democratic system. However, it does illustrate the point that a substantial proportion of Athenians did not like the idea of a democratic state)
