Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Athens When Athens was created as a city that captured the eyes of people from around the world. Built on top of a small community of the Mycenaean Civilization (early Greeks) is grew into a center point of the ancient world. Being a major super power with their military strength and wealth, they were also known for their development of democracy, philosophy, science, mathematics, drama and literature, and art. It was full and rich of culture. As civilization grew so did the social structure. With the growing population people began to show how they were more wealthy than the majority giving rise to the class system that dominated the lives of Athenians (people who live in Athens). Some classes were superior (better off) to other while some inferior (worse off). Higher classes enjoyed some special rights and benefits over the lower ones. Athenian Social Hierarchy The Upper Class Metics Freedmen The Slaves The Upper Class: The topmost class in the Ancient Greek Hierarchy (social structure) was the Upper Class. The people of this class possessed the uppermost power and position in the society. One has to be born in Athens to be a part of the Upper Class as the rights for this class could only be inherited on the hereditary basis (you can only earn this spot through birth). The upper class symbolized a good civil character, good artistic taste, and highly socialized individuals. The people from this class handled all the government work, philosophy and literature department, as well as the war. Athenians always got slaves to perform their materialistic works. This would save their precious time, which they had to use for administrative purposes. The Upper Class could have also been symbolized as the Leisure Class. They kept their time for the important activities related with the administration of the kingdom. Metics – The Middle Class: This was the next class in Ancient Greece Social Hierarchy. These people were not the natives of Athens, but came to Athens to settle down. They came to Athens to earn their livelihood. They were free men, not slaves, but possessed very little rights as compared to the Upper Class. They were mostly involved in trading and manufacturing jobs. Freedmen – The Lower Class: Freedmen were the next class in the Ancient Greek Social Hierarchy. These people were once slaves but somehow were freed by their owner. They were the lower class people (the poor) but they did not belong to Athens, i.e. they were not Athenians (born or immigrated) and were not granted citizenship in their life no matter how much money they earned. These people possessed very little privileges unlike the two classes above, but they lived better lives compared to salves who had zero privileges. The Slaves: This is the lowest class in Greek society, actually a level because it was never considered as a class. These people either were rescued from war, criminals or were bought from others. They possessed zero rights or authority. They did not even possess the rights to their own life. Very few of the slaves were actually Greeks as the majority of the slaves were non-Greeks (people from other lands). They had to pay a ransom amount to buy their freedom and get themselves free. (They would have to buy back their own life from their owner to be set free.