Athenian Democracy and Its Critics
Spring 2006

Syllabus: topics and readings

Jan 17	Orientation
	Reading: syllabus and CLIPs; Gettysburg Address
Jan 19	The Greek polis: who, what, where, when ... why
	Reading: Aristotle Politics 3.1-8 (pp 167-92)
Jan 24	Democracy's doubles: the case of Sparta
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 1; Aristotle Politics 2.9 (pp 139-49)
Jan 26	Athenian democracy: champions and critics
	Reading: Thucydides 2.34-46 (pp 143-51)
	"Old Oligarch: On the Athenian Constitution"
Athenian Government (weeks 3-6)
Jan 31	Athenian Democracy
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 2
Feb 2	Origins and restoration
	Reading: Aristotle Athenian Constitution 1-28 (pp 39-72)
	Declaration of Independence
Feb 7	Athenian freedom
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 3
	US Bill of Rights
Feb 9	Popular democracy
	Reading: Aristotle Athenian Constitution 29-41 (pp 72-86)
Feb 14	Assembly: powers and organization
	Reading: Aristotle Athenian Constitution 42-9 (pp 86-95)
	US Constitution Article 1
Feb 16	Officials: function and selection
	Reading: Aristotle Athenian Constitution 50-62 (pp 95-108)
	US Constitution Article 2
Feb 21	Courts: structure and procedure
	Reading: Aristotle Athenian Constitution 63-9 (pp 108-14)
	US Constitution Articles 3-7
Feb 23	Athenian trials: democratic justice
	Reading: Lysias Speech 1 (pdf @ CLIPs)
Democratic ideals (weeks 7-8)
Feb 28	Democracy and equality
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 6; Aristotle Politics 3.9-13 (pp 193-215)
Mar 2	Democracy and the rule of law
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 5; Aristotle Politics 3.14-18 (pp 216-32)
Mar 7	Democratic leadership
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 7-8
Mar 9	Pericles, "first citizen of Athens"
	Reading: Thucydides 1.139-46, 2.13-65 (pp 118-23, 132-64)

Spring Break

Democracy in action (weeks 9-10)
Mar 21	Athenian power: democratic empire?
	Reading: Thucydides 1.56-125 (pp 68-108)
Mar 23	Demagogues and debate
	Reading: Thucydides 3.1-68 (pp 194-236)
Mar 28	Civil harmony and civil war
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 4; Thucydides 3.69-84 (pp 236-45)
Mar 30	Democracy goes to war
	Reading: Thucydides 6.1-41 (pp 409-37)
Plato and education (weeks 11-12)
Apr 4	Plato's problem
	Reading: Republic 2 and 4 (pp 37-61, 111-29)
Apr 6	Plato's solution
	Reading: Republic 5 (pp 144-85)
Apr 11	Meritocracy
	Reading: Republic 7 (pp 220-51), also Republic 3 (pp 71-110)
Apr 13	Democratic education
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 9
Criticism and reform (weeks 13-15)
Apr 18	Athens in America
	Reading: Woodruff Ch. 10
Apr 20	TBA
Apr 25	Economic issues: democracy and class
	Reading: Aristotle Politics 4.1-13 (pp 235-76)
Apr 27	Democratic reforms
	Reading: Aristotle Politics 6.1-5 (pp 359-75)
	Federalist 10
May 2	TBA
May 4	TBA

These books will be on limited circulation via Course Reserves in PCL (left side of circulation desk):

P. Woodruff, First Democracy: The Challenge of an Ancient Idea (Oxford 2005). - JC 75 D36 W66

Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Harmondsworth 1984). - JC 71 A41 R47

M.H. Hansen, The Athenian Democracy in the Age of Demosthenes: Structure, Principles, and Ideology (Oxford 1991). - JC 79 A8 H33

The World of Athens: An Introduction to Classical Athenian Culture, Joint Association of Classical Teachers (Cambridge 1984). - DF 275 W69

Plutarch, The Rise and Fall of Athens: Nine Greek Lives (Harmondsworth 1960). - DE 7 P7 S3

M. Gagarin, P. Woodruff, Early Greek Political Thought from Homer to the Sophists (Cambridge 1995). - JC 73 N67

J. Ober, Political Dissent in Democratic Athens: Intellectual Critics of Popular Rule (Princeton 1998). - DF 275 O33; also online via UTCAT: search by title