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Listen & Learn: History of Democracy

Posted by: Jaksyn Peacock
Learn about voting in ancient Greece.
voting
Photo: Tara Winstead (Pexels)

Pre-listening vocabulary

  • democracy: a form of government where people vote for leaders and sometimes laws
  • eligible: considered fit to do something
  • citizen: someone who legally belongs to a country
  • evidence: proof that supports a certain theory or belief
  • civilization: a complex society with laws and government
  • elect: to vote for a leader
  • referendum: a vote on a law that all citizens can participate in directly

Listening activity

Gapfill exercise

The word “democracy” comes from the Greek word demokratia. “Demos” means “people” and kratos means “rule.” The idea of demokratia originated in Athens around 500 BCE. Athenian democracy was a direct democracy, which meant it allowed the people to vote on decisions and . Not everyone could vote. Only free citizens were eligible. The eligible people formed a part of government called the Assembly. To have a say, Athenian men had to go to Assembly meetings and share their . Although the word “democracy” originated in Greece, there is evidence for other ancient democracies. Some early tribes around the world used popular rule. Many historians now believe that civilizations in Mesoamerica also had democratic governments. Today, most democracies are representative, which means that people elect to make decisions for them. However, some countries, like Switzerland, require referendums for important decisions.

Comprehension questions

See answers below

  1. To vote in Athenian democracy, you had to be
    a. a free citizen
    b. a free land-owning citizen
    c. a free male citizen
  2. The part of government made up of all eligible Athenian citizens was called
    a. the Senate
    b. the Council
    c. the Assembly
  3. Most democracies around the world are
    a. direct
    b. representative
    c. authoritarian

Discussion/essay questions

  1. Winston Churchill famously said “Democracy is the worst system of government except for all those other forms that have been tried.” What do you think of this quote? Do you agree or disagree? What do you think the best system of government would look like?

Transcript

The word “democracy” comes from the ancient Greek word demokratia. “Demos” means “people” and kratos means “rule.” The idea of demokratia originated in Athens around 500 BCE. Athenian democracy was a direct democracy, which meant it allowed the people to vote on decisions and laws. Not everyone could vote. Only free male citizens were eligible. The eligible people formed a part of government called the Assembly. To participate, Athenian men had to go to Assembly meetings and share their opinions. Although the word “democracy” originated in Greece, there is evidence for other ancient democracies. Some early tribes around the world used popular rule. Many historians now believe that civilizations in Mesoamerica also had democratic governments. Today, most democracies are representative, which means that people elect leaders to make decisions for them. However, some countries, like Switzerland, require referendums for important decisions.

Answers to comprehension questions

1c 2c 3b

Written and recorded by Jaksyn Peacock for EnglishClub
© EnglishClub.com

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