The Ancient City

Part I of Essay
“How democratic was Pompeian politics?” In order to answer the above question, it is first necessary to consider the exact meaning of the term “democracy”. Whilst it is difficult to give an exact definition of the word, it is certainly possible to cr ....

Part II of Essay
.... politicians would be fully employed by the state in the running of the country. Given such implications of democracy, Pompeian politics would appear at first appraisal to hardly be democratic at all. Certainly, it can be said that the politics of Pompeii in particular and by extension the politics of Roman society as a whole do not meet the modern, Western ideas of a relatively liberal, democratic society. However, such a modern, Western idea of democracy was one that was entirely alien to the citizens of Pompeii and to the citizens of ma ....