Disputes and Democracy: The Consequences of Litigation in Ancient Athens

by Steven Johnstone

Book Overview

Athenians performed democracy daily in their law courts. Without lawyers or judges, private citizens, acting as accusers and defendants, argued their own cases directly to juries composed typically of 201 to 501 jurors, who voted on a verdict without deliberation. This legal system strengthened and perpetuated democracy as Athenians understood it, for it emphasized the ideological equality of all (male) citizens and the hierarchy that placed them...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0292740530
• ISBN13: 9780292740532
• Release Date: August 1999
• Publisher: University of Texas Press
• Length: 223 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"