The Ancient Greeks case study

The Ancient Greeks case study

The Ancient Greeks, Part Two:

Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle

Dr. C. George Boeree

“The unexamined life is not worth living.” — Socrates

In Ukrainian: Сократ, Платон і Арістотель (translated by Olena Chervona) In Russian: Сократ, Платон и Аристотель (translated by Olha Fiodorova) In Macedonian: Сократ, Платон и Аристотель (translated by Katerina Nestiv) In Chinese: 前蘇格拉底時代 (translated by Liu Yu) In Spanish: Sócrates, Platón y Aristóteles (translated by Laura Mancini) In Polish: Sokrates, Platon i Arystoteles (translated by Marek Murawski) In French: Socrate, Platon et Aristote (translated by Mathilde Guibert) In Filipino: Socrates, Plato, at Aristotle (translated by Jessica Higgins) In Serbian: Сократ, Платон и Аристотел (translated by Branca Fiagic) In Mongolian: Сократ, Платон, Аристотель (translated by Batar Ulanov)

The Athenians

When we think of ancient Greece, we think right away of Athens.  Several of the philosophers we have already discussed considered it the pinnacle of their careers to come and teach in this great city.

But Athens wasn’t always great.  It began as a collection of villages in some of the poorest agricultural land in Greece.  Only carefully tended grapes and olives provided early Athens with a livelihood, that and trade.

The distance between the haves — the ruling aristocratic trading families — and the have nots — peasants working the land — and the accompanying feudal oppression, grew so great that it looked like the city and its surrounding area would collapse under the weight.

In 594 bc, the leaders of the middle class recruited a merchant named Solon to accept leadership of the city and restore some peace and prosperity.  He began by canceling all debts and freeing all who had been enslaved on account of debt.  Then he proceeded to draft a constitution in which the population was divided into four classes based entirely on economic worth, with the highest retaining the greatest power, but the lowest being exempt from taxes.

After a difficult transition, the world’s first democracy was established  under the leadership of Cleisthenes in 507 bc, when he decreed that all free men would be permitted to vote.  This, of course, falls short of a complete democracy, but don’t judge them too harshly:  Slavery would not outlawed until 1814, when Mexico would become the very first sovereign nation to permanently ban slavery.  The US wouldn’t free its slaves until 1865 with the 13th amendment.  And women didn’t get to vote until New Zealand gave them the vote in 1893.  It would take the US until 1919 and the 19th amendment.

Unfortunately, at about the same time the democratic experiment began, the great Persian Empire to the east decided to expand into, first, Ionia, and then Greece proper.  But in 490 bc, 20,000 Greeks defeated 100,000 Persian troops at Marathon, north of Athens.  (A messenger named Pheidippides ran the 26 miles — 42.195 km — to Athens to give them the good news, hence the sport of marathon running!)

In 481, the Persian emperor Xerxes sent an army of over two million men, assisted by a fleet of 1200 ships, to attack Greece again.  The army ravaged the north of Greece and prepared to attack Athens.  They found the city deserted.  The Persian navy, however, found the Greek fleet waiting for it in the Bay of Salamis.  The Greeks won the day against enormous odds.  By 479, the Persians were forced back into Asia Minor.