Ancient Greece: Difference Between Aristocracy And Oligarchy

701 Words3 Pages
HIST 1421 Introduction Ancient Greece was made up of a collection of poleis, translated as “city-state”. Each polis was politically and economically independent of one another (Cartwright, 2013). The city-states represented a large range of governmental forms. Aristotle defined six possible types of governments, all of which were represented. Taken from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Miller, 1998) Monarchy (kingship): Macedonia and Epeiros are examples of polis that were ruled by a monarch, though the monarch’s power was somewhat tempered by an assembly.(Cartwright, 2013). Sparta was well known for having two kings, though their power was only absolute during war campaigns. (Brand, n.d.). A monarchy typically put the power in the hands of a single ruler who was determined due to inheritance from the previous…show more content…
However, Aristotle considered Oligarchy to be a perversion of Aristocracy. (Miller, 1998). The difference between Aristocracy and Oligarchy, much like the difference between monarchy and tyranny is whether the government is for the people or self-interested. In practice, oligarchies were often a rule by the wealthy, and taking into consideration only the desires of the wealthy. (Gill, n.d.). In Athens, oligarchies would spring up to overthrow democracy periodically, such as in 411 BCE and in 404 BCE which was referred to as the rule of the “thirty tyrants”. (Cartwright, 2011) Polity: According to Kim (2013) when we talk about democracy, what we are referring to is actually a polity (from Aristotle’s point of view). Athens in 507 BCE is the classic example of a working democracy, which would have been considered a polity to Aristotle. In this system the power of the government is in the hands of the people, and everyone has an equal say in policy. Currently a representative democracy is more common, but in Athens every citizen (free male Athenians) had an equal vote.
Show More
Related

  • How Far Did Alexander The Great's Empire Reach?

    1970 Words  | 8 Pages

    EWH: Ancient Greece: Study Guide Any and all of these items may appear on the test. If it is not on this list it will not be on the test as a regular question, only potentially as a bonus question. You may create one double sided 3” x 5” notecard for the test. 1. How far did Alexander the Great’s Empire reach? Alexander the Great’s Empire reached from Greece to the Indus River. 2. What did Greek architecture seek to reflect? Greek architecture seeks to reflect perfect balance and universal harmony

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Athens And Sparta

    802 Words  | 4 Pages

    At first glance, Sparta and Athens appeared as two very different poleis of Ancient Greece. However, if one examined the pair more closely, they could see more similarities. Nevertheless, the similarities are on a broader level and differences still remained. Both Sparta and Athens fit the definition of a polis. I would define a polis as city-state – an urban center with countryside. An essential factor is some amount of unity. With this, the people of city-state could band together and take

    Read More

  • Comparing Spartan And Athenian Democracy In Ancient Greece

    1201 Words  | 5 Pages

    Spartan and Athenian Political Structure The political systems of ancient Greece’s Spartan and Athenian societies stood opposite to each other. Where Sparta was ruled by the few in an Oligarchy, Athens developed the humanities’ first democracy. This paper compares and contrasts some of the differences between these two Greek powers during the Archaic and Classical periods (800-323 BCE). Historical Background On one side was Sparta, a warrior society that focused on land-based armies and agriculture

    Read More

More about Ancient Greece: Difference Between Aristocracy And Oligarchy

Open Document