MWH:
Prologue - The Rise of Democratic Ideas - Lecture NotesMWH:
Prologue - The Rise of Democratic Ideas - Lecture Notes
* Bold print denotes a term from lecture only.
Historians research and describe the history of the human race over centuries or even a few millennia. By contrast, the life of an individual person takes place within days, years, and decades. To order these time periods, each individual day, week, month, and year are provided with a date in the calendar, so that they can all be named without ambiguity and can be differentiated from one another.
|
|
|
Calendars allow us not only to order and structure the past, but also to plan the future. They play a varied and indispensable role in our daily life. Each person has developed an individual feeling for whether an event lies only a few days in the past or a few years. Using the always present task of differentiating, ordering, or simply remembering the elapsed days, different cultures in the human race must have acquired methods of counting and ordering the number systems in different ways.
The concept of geologic time and the way it is measured have changed over the years. For example, early Christian theologians were mostly responsible for formulating the idea that time is linear rather than circular.
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 A.D.) stated that the Crucifixion was a unique event from which all other events could be measured, thus establishing the idea of the B.C. and A.D. time scale. The Gregorian calendar is the one commonly used today. It was decreed by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. In the Gregorian calendar, the year is approximated as 365 days.
BC Time: As most people know, "BC" stands for "before Christ", or before Jesus of Nazareth. BC time counts backward from when the early scholars thought to be the time of Jesus.
* Problem #1: Unfortunately, we now know that Jesus was NOT born in AD1. We now know they were off between 3 to 6 years. Most scholars will agree with setting Jesus' birth between AD 4 and AD 5.
AD Time: "Anno Domini" is Latin for "in the year of Our Lord" (NOT after death), referring to Jesus of Nazareth. That is, "AD 1996" literally means "in the 1996'th year since the birth of the Christ." AD time obviously counts forward from the birth of Jesus.
* Problem #2: Now not all the world is Christian, so it makes no sense for a Jew, a Muslim, a Hindu, a Witch, a Druid, or an atheist to refer to the date as being in the year of "their Lord" when they don't follow him.
CE Time: CE stands for "Common Era." It is a relatively new term that is experiencing increased usage and is eventually expected to replace AD. The latter is an abbreviation for "Anno Domini" in Latin or "the year of the Lord" in English. The latter refers to the approximate birth year of Jesus of Nazareth.
CE and AD have the same and value. 2004 CE = 2004 AD.
BCE stands for "Before the common era." It is eventually expected to replace BC, which means "Before Christ." BC and BCE are also identical in value. Most theologians and religious historians believe that the approximate birth date of Jesus of Nazareth was in the fall, sometime between 6 and 4 BC.
4 Historical time periods:
- Prehistoric Times: Prehistory consists of the period of human history from which no written records have survived. Although people disagree as to
when prehistory began; it is commonly cited as having begun about 100,000 to 200,000 years ago with the appearance of the first
modern Homo sapiens.
- Ancient Times: is from the period of time when writing and historical records first appear, roughly 3,500 BC to AD 476 (the Fall of the Roman Empire)
- Medieval (Middle Ages) Times: The Middle Ages of Western Europe are commonly dated from the end of the Western Roman Empire (476) until the rise of
national monarchies, of European overseas exploration, the invention and diffusion of printing, and the humanist revival of the
Renaissance in about 1500.
- Early Modern Times: the time between the Middle Ages and the Industrial Revolution that has created modern society. The early modern period is characterized
by the rise to importance of science, cumulative and increasingly rapid technological progress, secularized civic politics and
capitalist economics.
- Modern Times: post Industrial Revolution (about 1800) to present day
P-1: The Legacy of Ancient Greece and Rome
2000 BC: the Greeks established cities in the small fertile valleys along Greece’s rocky coast.
City-state: local political entities. They were like little countries.
* 5 characteristics of a city-state:
1.) Pride in homeland.
2.) Natural-born citizenship only.
3.) Jealous of independence.
4.) Only cooperated with other city-states in the event of invasion.
5.) Had a democratic government.
government: a system for controlling the society.
Monarchy: a government ruled by a single person called a king/queen, emperor/empress, or czar/czarina.
Aristocracy: a government ruled by a small group of noble, land-owning families.
Oligarchy: a government ruled by a few powerful people.
Democracy: rule by the people.
- demos: Greek meaning “people”
- kratos: Greek meaning “power”.
Athens: the largest and most powerful city-state to emerge in Ancient Greece.
- citizens: People who participated in governmental decision-making.
* who: Adult male residents
* responsibilities: Each year, an assembly of citizens elected three nobles to rule the city-state.
- government: Three nobles elected ruled the city-state. After a year of service, the nobles became part of a larger council of advisers.
- 600 BC: Athens begins to suffer severe economic problems; mostly due to crop failures.
* farmers' problems: They had a great deal of debt.
+ 3 actions:
1.) The farmers pledged part of their crops to wealthy landowners.
2.) Later they pledged their land.
3.) Finally they sold themselves into slavery and were not able to leave the land.
+ debt slavery: A common practice in ancient times for someone who owed great debt to sell themselves into slavery. They became
slave to whomever they owed the debt. Sometimes they would be "freed" after the debt was paid off, but
more often than not, they were never freed.
ANALYZING KEY CONCEPTS (page 6)
4 points on rules (laws):
1.) Rules (laws) are designed to keep order within the society.
2.) Rules (laws) are designed to promote the behaviors that the society approves.
3.) Rules (laws) are designed to protect the society from outside dangers.
4.) The government has the authority to administer punishments if the rules are broken.
594 BC: Solon comes to power and begins to change the laws.
Solon: was a respected statesman (politician). He is also known as one of the Seven Wise Men of Greece due to his contributions to the city-state. Unfortunately, his
reforms did not really please either the wealthy or the poor.
- 16 actions (7 in text)
1.) Passed a law outlawing slavery based on debt.
2.) Canceled the farmers’ debts.
3.) Established four classes of citizenship based on wealth rather than heredity.
4.) Allowed only citizens of the three higher classes to hold public office.
5.) Allowed the lowest class of citizens could vote in the assembly.
6.) Created the Council of Four Hundred.
7.) Introduced the legal concept that any citizen could bring charges against wrongdoers.
8.) Recalled all exiles – people who had been ejected from the country, or had run away because of debts.
9.) Limited the amount of land that could be owned by one person.
10.) Extended citizenship to some skilled artisans in other cities, provided that they moved to Athens.
11.) Stopped the exportation of grain to increase the food supply and keep prices down.
12.) Encouraged the growth of olive trees.
13.) Encouraged the exportation of olive oil and wine to increase trade.
14.) Established a new law code (less severe than that of Draco (another Greek tyrant), which guaranteed citizens the right to bring about
changes in the government.
15.) Established a court system, with jury trials for all.
16.) Created the Heliaea – a court of appeals.
- Council of Four Hundred: prepared business for the already existing council.
- limited democracy: A democracy in which only some citizens can participate in government.
- % of people who could participate in government: about 10% (1/10 of the population)
- 4 groups of people denied citizenship:
1.) Non-free males
2.) Women
3.) Slaves
4.) All foreign residents.
Cleisthenes: is generally regarded as the founder of democracy in Athens. He worked to make Athens a full democracy.
- 3 actions:
1.) Reorganized the assembly to balance the power of the rich and poor.
2.) Increased the power of the assembly by allowing all citizens to submit laws for debate and passage.
3.) Created the Council of Five Hundred.
Council of Five Hundred: another governmental branch… sort of.
- 2 duties: proposed laws and counseled the assembly.
- membership: chosen at random from among the citizens.
% of population that were citizens under Cleisthenes: only 20% (one-fifth) of Athenian residents were actual citizens.
Persian Wars: were a series of conflicts between the Greek world and the Persian Empire that started about 500 BC and lasted until 448 BC.
- dates: 490 to 479 B.C
- way Athenians maintained democracy during wars:
Pericles: Athenian statesman, who dominated the political scene for 40 years, is associated with great cultural activity. He was responsible for building the
Parthenon, the temple on the Acropolis that was dedicated to Athena, the goddess of wisdom.
- reign: 461 to 429 B.C.
- Golden Age of Athens (or Greece): Period from 461 BC to 379 BC in which great strides were made in the area of culture. It is considered to be the high
point of Ancient Greece.
- major action: strengthened Greek democracy by increasing the number of paid public officials and by paying jurors.
* result: enabled poorer citizens to participate in the government.
direct democracy: a form of government in which citizens rule and make laws directly rather than through representatives. Also called a representative democracy, or
a republic.
citizen participation in Athens: More Athenian citizens were actively involved in government than in any other city-state.
Peloponnesian War: Warfare between the city-states… well really just Athens and Sparta. It ended democracy in Greece when they were invaded by Macedonia
- dates: 431-404 BC
- 2 city-states involved: Athens and Sparta
Philosophy: It is the rational investigation of questions about existence, knowledge and ethics; any personal belief about how to live or how to deal with a situation. Greek for "love of wisdom" or " the search for truth ".
- philo: means wisdom
- sophy: means love of
Logic: is concerned with what is true and how we can know whether something is true; reasoned thought.
Greek Philosophers: Great thinkers who used logic and reason to investigate the nature of the universe, human society, and morality. They began in the 300's BC.
- what they wanted to do: To use logic and reason to investigate the nature of the universe, human society, and morality.
- 2 bases for philosophy:
1.) The universe (land, sky, and sea) is put together in an orderly way and is subject to absolute and unchanging laws.
2.) People can understand these laws through logic and reason.
Socrates: The first of these great philosophers. He is considered to be one of the greatest teachers of all time.
- “Know Thyself”: Ancient Greek aphorism was inscribed in golden letters at the entrance to the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. (An aphorism is a wise
saying that bears repetition.) Socrates felt this was the most important knowledge a person could gain.
- Gadfly: is a term for people who upset the status quo by posing upsetting or novel questions, or attempts to stimulate innovation by proving an irritant.
The term "gadfly" was coined by Plato to describe Socrates' relationship of uncomfortable prodding to the Athenian politician scene, which he
compared to a slow and dimwitted horse. We still use the term to describe many politicians and social commentators.
- what he encouraged students to do: to examine their most closely held beliefs.
- Socratic method: A question and answer dialog Socrates used for his teaching.
- written record: He left none. We only know about him from the writings of Plato.
- Trial and death of: See Scorates handouts
- death: Socrates was sentenced to death in his trial. He drank hemlock.
Plato: Another great Greek philosopher
- relation to Socrates: his student--- who actually wrote down some
of what Socrates said, albeit, a long time
after it was said. His writings (and those of
playwrights Aristophanes and Xenophon) are
the only sources of information on Socrates.
He was also the teacher of Aristotle.
- The Republic: In his most famous work he set forth his vision of a
perfectly governed society.
* “philosopher-kings”: Whom Plato felt should rule the
republic. These guys would be not the
richest and most powerful but by the
wisest in the society. If they were the
wisest, they should make good kings,
and rule fairly.
- the Academy: the Athenian school of philosophy and learning
that Plato founded in approximately 385 BC.
The Academy continued in operation for several
hundred years. The term academy and
academic are now general terms for learning in
schools, colleges, and universities.
In the Academy, Plato gave lectures or talks
or seminars or held conversations, but we have
no record of what he said. He did not write it
down. In fact he did not think that philosophy
could be learned from writings, but only in
conversation. He said, "After much converse
about the matter itself and a life lived
together, suddenly a light, as it were, is kindled
in one soul by a flame that leaps to it from
another".
Aristotle: Plato’s student who examined the nature of the world and of
human belief, thought, and knowledge. Along with Plato, he
is often considered to be one of the two most influential
philosophers in Western thought. He wrote many books about
physics, poetry, zoology, logic, government, and biology.
Aristotle's books are not easy to read. At first they seem
highly organized and comprehensive essays, but when you
read them you often find that the plan announced at the
beginning is not actually carried out, that there are overlaps
and gaps, and so on. Unfortunately, historians believe that
the majority of Aristotle's work has been lost.
Aristotle was also the tutor of Alexander the Great.
- Politics: His comprehensive examination of the origins and
structure of the state.
Depending upon the number of people involved in
governing and the focus of their interests, Aristotle
distinguished six kinds of social structure in three
pairs:
1.) A state with only one ruler is either a monarchy or a
tyranny.
2.) A state with several rulers is either an aristocracy or
an oligarchy.
3.) A state in which all rule is either a polity or a
democracy.
In each pair, the first sort of state is one in which the
rulers are concerned with the good of the state, while
those of the second sort are those in which the rulers
serve their own private interests.
- the Lyceum: He established his own school, the Lyceum,
spending most of the rest of his life engaged
there in research, teaching, and writing. He and
students often walked around on the grounds
while discussing. At Lyceum, Aristotle would give
advanced lessons to a private circle in the
morning, and in the afternoons he would hold
more popular speeches to a larger crowd.
HISTORY IN DEPTH (page 8)
Athenian juries: Jury duty was considered to be the most important
civic duty.
- 2 duties:
1.) The jurors would hear both sides of a legal case.
2.) Then they would render their verdict by casting bronze
ballots in a large ballot box.
- size: ranged in size from at least 201 to as many as 2,500 men.
- role of women: Women were not allowed to serve as jurors.
- ostracize: to banish, a leader from Athens for ten years to
prevent a person from gaining too much power.
18 contributions of the Greeks (4 in text)
1.) Set lasting standards in government and philosophy.
2.) They used reason and intelligence to discover patterns and
explanations of the world that they called natural laws.
3.) They developed direct democracy in order that citizens could
actively participate in political decisions.
4.) They also were the first to develop three branches of
government - legislative, executive, and judicial.
5.) Democracy (the whole concept)
6.) Equality of citizens
7.) Idea of public service
8.) Individual freedom
9. Classical architecture
10.) Sculpture
11.) Written history
12.) Philosophy
13.) Drama
14.) Poetry
15.) Physics
16.) Biology
17.) Mathematics
18.) Medicine
- legislative branch: to make and pass laws
- executive branch: to carry out the laws
- judicial branch: to settle disputes about the laws
Rome: A civilization on the Italian Peninsula that began developing, and would eventually be the largest civilization in the ancient world.
- Latins: The earliest Romans
* dates: 1000 to 500 B.C.
- 2 groups they fought:
1.) Greeks
2.) Etruscans
600 BC: a series of kings ruled Rome.
509 BC: a group of Roman aristocrats overthrew a harsh king. They set
up a new government, calling it a republic.
Republic: a form of government in which power rests with citizens who
have the right to elect the leaders who make governmental
decisions.
- indirect democracy: when citizens who have the right to elect the
leaders who make governmental decisions.
- voting rights: citizenship with voting rights was granted only to
free-born males.
Patricians: the upper social class was aristocratic landowners who held
most of the power.
Plebeians: the lower Roman social class.
* 3 groups: common farmers, artisans, and merchants.
2 points on the Patricians:
1.) They inherited their power and social status.
2.) They claimed that their ancestry gave them the authority to
make laws for Rome and its people.
2 points on the Plebeians:
1.) They had the right to vote.
2.) They were barred by law from holding most important
government positions.
problem with unwritten laws: With laws unwritten, patrician officials
often interpreted the law to suit themselves. They could
also change laws as they wished.
Twelve Tables: The first set of written laws in the Roman republic.
They had the laws carved on 12 tables, or tablets, and
publicly displayed. For the first time, all the people
knew what the laws were.
- date: 451 BC
- 2 ideas:
1.) It established the idea that all free citizens had the right
to protection of the law.
2.) Now laws would be fairly administered.
Consuls: Governmental officials who ruled in early Rome. They formed
the executive branch of government.
- 2 duties:
1.) They commanded the army.
2.) They directed the government.
- term of office: only one year
Senate: one of the three legislative bodies in the Roman government.
- 4 points:
1.) Patricians made up the senate.
2.) It controlled foreign policy.
3.) It controlled financial policies.
4.) It advised the consuls.
Dictator: a leader who had absolute power to make laws and command the army.
- when used: in a time of crisis.
- term of office: The dictator was limited to a six-month term.
Problem with Roman expansion: For hundreds of years after the
founding of the republic, Rome
expanded its territories through
conquest and trade. It just got too
large to handle.
- 2 points:
1.) It had the chaos of civil war.
2.) The authoritarian rule of a series of dictators ruined Rome.
27 BC: the republic collapsed, and Rome came under the rule of an
emperor (a monarchy).
reason Rome was a great power: by conquering other lands AND by
bringing the conquered peoples into
its system. People felt like they
belonged.
3 beliefs the Romans shared with the Greeks:
1.) They believed that laws should be based on principles of reason
and justice.
2.) They believed that the laws should protect citizens and their
property.
** This idea applied to all people regardless of their
nationality. **
4 principles of Roman law:
1.) All citizens had the right to equal treatment under the law.
2.) A person was considered innocent until proven guilty.
3.) The burden of proof rested with the accuser rather than the
accused.
4.) Any law that seemed unreasonable or grossly unfair could be set
aside.
528: The Justinian Code was written.
Justinian: Emperor who ordered the compilation of all Roman laws since the earlier law code.
- Justinian Code: The new law code consisted of four works.
* The Code: contained nearly 5,000 Roman laws.
* The Digest: a summary of legal opinions.
* The Institutes: served as a textbook for law students.
* The Novellae: contained laws passed after 534
- as a guide: It later became a guide on legal matters throughout
Western Europe.
- “A government of laws, not of men.”: Written laws helped
establish this idea.
* meaning: It was a government in which even rulers and
other powerful persons could be held accountable
for their actions.
4 contributions of Rome:
1.) Rome gave the world the idea of a republic.
2.) The idea that an individual is a citizen in a state rather than the
subject of a ruler.
3.) Rome’s greatest and most lasting legacy was its written legal
code and the idea that this code should be applied equally and
impartially to all citizens.
4.) Rome preserved and added to Greece’s idea of democracy and
passed on the early democratic tradition to civilizations that
followed.
P-2: Judeo-Christian Traditions
Monotheism: belief in one god/goddess
Polytheism: Belief in many gods/goddesses
3 monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
- 2 ideas that they had on the development of democracy:
1.) The idea of the worth of the individual.
2.) The idea of the responsibility of individuals to their
community.
Hebrews: Name for the ancient leaders and followers of Judaism.
- other names: Jews, Israelites
Torah: the first five books of the Hebrew Bible (or of the Old Testament
for Christians). It is also called the Pentateuch.
Abraham: According to the Bible, he was chosen by God to be the
“father,” or ancestor, of the Hebrew people. He was given
the job of leading them to Canaan.
Canaan: an area of ancient Palestine.
- 1800 BC: The time of the Hebrew moving into Canaan.
polytheists: people who believed in more than one God.
8 beliefs of the Hebrews: They believed -
1.) There was only one God.
2.) God was perfect, all-knowing, all powerful, and eternal.
- way other groups saw gods/goddesses: thought that what
the gods wanted from human beings was the
performance of rituals and sacrifices in their honor.
3.) It was God’s wish for people to live moral lives.
4.) Human beings are created in God’s image.
5.) Each human being has a divine spark that gives him or her a
dignity that can never be taken away.
** For the Greeks and Romans, the individual had dignity
because of his or her ability to reason.