Ancient Greece
Athens A "Golden Age" for Athens? The 5th century BCE was a period of great development in Ancient Greece, and specifically in Athens. The development of so many cultural achievements within Athens and the Athenian Empire has led scholars to deem this period a "Golden Age." It is true that his period had many achievements, but in the light of the Athenians treatment of women, metics (non-Athenians living in Athens), and slaves it is given to question whether or not the period can truly be called "Golden." The 5th century and the Athenian Empire gave birth to an amazing amount of accomplishments. One such accomplishment was the minting of standard Athenian coins that were used throughout the Athenian holdings as valid for trade. The use of standard Athenian-minted coins helped the Athenians establish and maintain control over their empire by helping to control trade and the economy of the area to the Athenians' benefit. Since Athens regularly received tribute from the states it controlled, Pericles, the leader of Athens, began a building project in Athens that was legendary. Athens had been sacked by the Persians during the Persian Wars and Pericles set out to rebuild the city. The city's walls had already been rebuilt right afte
It was possible for a slave to save enough money to buy his freedom, but a freed slave had only as much status as a metic. The 5th century BCE was also an important time for Athenian thought. Although some metics families eventually gained wealth, the vast majority of the metics remained second-class inhabitants of Athens, even though they performed some of the polis' most activities, such as military service and trade. Metics were not allowed voting privileges in the Athenian democracy, but were compulsed to serve a specified time in the Athenian military and were taxed by the Athenians. He then explains to his wife, "And since labor and diligence are required both indoors and outdoors_it seems to me that the god prepared the woman's nature especially for indoor jobs and cares and the man's nature for outdoor jobs and concerns. Women were considered intellectual non-entities and were treated as such in the Athenian Empire. Before one can or cannot place a "Golden Age" label on 5th century Athens, one must consider other times when the ends of man's accomplishments may not have justified the means. Likewise the Industrial Revolution is said to be a great accomplishment of mankind, but little recognition is given to the horrible factory conditions that employees, many women and children, endured. The Sophists high regard for rhetoric was later of great use to citizen addressing the Assembly in the developing Athenian democracy. ------------------------------------------------------------------------**Bibliography**. The Athenian wife was expected to marry and bring a dowry into her husband's house. Democracy grew out of the status that poorer Athenians were gaining as rowers for the ships of the large Athenian fleet. Ischomacus, a young husband, is conversing with Socrates about the duties of husband and wife. The primary function of a citizen's wife was to take care of domestic affairs and provide the citizen with an heir. Athens could be compared to post- Revolutionary America, where a "democratic" government was only available to white male citizens.
Common topics in this essay:
Athenians Metics,
Oeconomicus Ischomacus,
Golden Age,
Athenian Empire,
BC_ Demand,
BCE Democracy,
Parthenon Parthenon,
Empire Metics,
BCE Sophists,
Industrial Revolution,
5th century,
century bce,
5th century bce,
golden age,
athenian empire,
democratic government,
athenian democracy,
women metics,
care domestic affairs,
building project,
century athenian,
period golden age,
poorer athenians,
women metics slaves,
athens 5th century,
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Acceptance Essays
