A Government Older Than Its Country Essay -- Greek and Roman democracy

Although almost everything in American architecture, language, military concepts, and ideals can be traced back to both Roman and Greek cultures, the single most influential concept that has been retained from Rome and Greece is government set-up. Either the direct democracy of Greece or the elective democracy of Rome can be seen in modern America. Although seen more and more rarely in the United States, direct democracy still exists today. Direct democracy means that each person votes on decisions individually, as opposed to representative democracy in which an elected individual makes, or helps make decisions. This can be traced back to ancient Athens. When farmers and the working class became angered by the laws passed by Greece's wealthy, Great Council, they pleaded for demos kratia, which translates to democracy in English, and can be defined as; government by the people, " Gradually, Athenian leaders agreed that more Greeks should be allowed to participate in the Great Council's decision-making process"( dsusd.k12.ca.us). Currently, this form of government, which was admonished by the founders of the United States Constitution, is not seen frequently in the United States. Few examples can be seen, such as town meetings, voting in parent teacher associations, or other small town decisions where the amount of votes are abl e to be counted by hand in a short meeting. However, since many believe that The concept of democracy was started in ancient Greece, but the system held what one may even relate to the checks and balances of modern America. One of the most notable of these was The Boule, " The boule was a group of 500 men, 50 from each of ten Athenian tribes, who served on the Council for one year"( history.com). This ... ...ent/>. The Editors of Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica. "Roman Republic (ancient state [509 BC-27 BC])." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Dec. 2013. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. . History.com, Staff. "Ancient Greek Democracy." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 1 Jan. 1996. Web. 1 May 2014. . "Sources of Ideas That Shaped The American Plan of Government." . Desert Sands Unified School District, n.d. Web. 29 Apr. 2014. . Trueman, Chris. "How was Rome governed." How was Rome governed. N.p., 1 Jan. 2000. Web. 1 May 2014. .