Ancient Athens Map Skills and Athenian Roles

Mapping Skills

• A map of ancient Greece is essential to understand directions, scale, titles, and legends.

Athenian Roles

• Residents of Ancient Athens consisted of:
  • Citizens: had rights, freedoms, and responsibilities
  • Metics: non-Athenian free people with limited rights
  • Slaves: had minimal rights and performed laborious tasks

Gender Roles and Responsibilities in Athenian Society

• Understanding of gender roles and responsibilities in Ancient Athens is crucial
• Compare and contrast roles and responsibilities of both genders

The Building Blocks of Athenian Democracy

• 6 building blocks of Athenian Democracy must be identified and compared with modern Canadian Democracy
• Key idea: citizens should be allowed to rule themselves
• Principles:
  • Majority rule (more than 50%) is fair
  • People of the same social class should have equal rights
  • Women, slaves, and metics were denied voting rights
  • Slavery was an accepted part of Athenian society
  • Individual and minority rights were not considered in Athenian democracy
  • The common good was the highest value

Decision Making in Athenian Democracy

• 3 pillars of Athenian Democracy:
  • The Assembly: all male citizens had the right to belong and vote
  • The Council of 500
  • The Court
• Students should understand the structure and function of each pillar

Introduction to Athenian Democracy

• Athens was part of ancient Greece, comprising various city-states
• Greek history reflects diverse forms of governance: monarchy, oligarchy, and democracy

Geographic and Historical Context

• Greece features mountainous landscapes and islands
• Major events in Greek history include the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations, the Trojan War, and the rise of democracy

Forms of Government

• Monarchy: ruled by a single power or tyrant
• Oligarchy: governed by a small group of wealthy citizens
• Democracy: power vested in the people, with elected officials and citizen participation

Athenian Democracy

• Democracy emerged in Athens around 508 BC, emphasizing "people power"
• Key governmental bodies: the Ecclesia (assembly), the Boule (council), and the courts

Democratic Processes

• Voting: citizens participated in decision-making through methods like placing pebbles in vases
• Eligibility: only male citizens who met specific criteria could vote, excluding women, slaves, and foreigners

Test your knowledge of mapping skills and roles in Ancient Athens. Identify directions, scale, titles, and legends in a Greek map and understand the rights, freedoms, and responsibilities of different roles in Ancient Athens.