Economic Equality and Direct Democracy in Ancient Athens

Economic Equality and Direct Democracy in Ancient Athens argues against mainstream views, which tend to find an inexplicable paradox between ancient Athens' extraordinary politics, on the one hand, and its apparent economic inequality, on the other hand. In contrast, the author suggests that in the period c.594-323 B.C., Athenian males controlled significant means of production, in particular land, which enabled these relatively independent men to successfully challenge their exclusion from politics. It is generally agreed that Athens produced the most radical form of democracy in the history of humanity. What is often overlooked, however, is that its radical nature was rooted in an equally radical version of economic parity. The book concludes by suggesting that the key lesson we 'moderns' can take from Athens is that some form of economic democracy is a necessary prerequisite for political democracy.

Larry Patriquin is Professor of Social Welfare and Social Development at Nipissing University, Canada. He is the author of Agrarian Capitalism and Poor Relief in England, 1500-1860: Rethinking the Origins of the Welfare State and the editor of The Ellen Meiksins Wood Reader.

1. Introduction: The Importance of Athens
2. Origins of the Polis
3. How Athenian Democracy Worked
4. Equality and Inequality
5. Elite Critics of Popular Rule
6. The End of Direct Democracy
7. Conclusion: The Key Lesson for Contemporary Democracy