Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian
War provides insight into Greek democracy, both ancient and current. Here are some excerpts from Pericles’ famous Funeral
Oration (circa 431 BC), found
therein, which honours the first of the Athenian war dead in the struggle
against Sparta:
Let me say that our
system of government does not copy the institutions of our neighbours. It is more the case of our being a model to
others, than of our imitating anyone else.
Our constitution is called a democracy because power is in the hands not
of a minority but of the whole people.
When it is a question of settling private disputes, everyone is equal
before the law; when it is a question of putting one person before another in
positions of public responsibility, what counts is not membership of a
particular class, but the actual ability which the man possesses. …
… We give our
obedience to those whom we put in positions of authority, and we obey the laws
themselves, especially those which are for the protection of the oppressed, and
those unwritten laws which it is an acknowledged shame to break. …
… Then there is a
great difference between us and our opponents in our attitude towards military
security. Here are some examples: Our
city is open to the world, and we have no periodical deportations in order to
prevent people observing or finding out secrets which might be of military
advantage to the enemy. This is because
we rely, not on secret weapons, but on our own real courage and loyalty. There is a difference, too, in our
educational systems. The Spartans, from
their earliest boyhood, are submitted to the most laborious training in courage;
we pass our lives without all these restrictions …[1]
[1] Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian
War, tr. Rex Warner and intro by M.I. Finley (Penguin: Harmondsworth UK,
1972), pp. 145,146.
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