Pericles’ Funeral Oration
“Our constitution is called a democracy because power is in the hands not of a minority but of the whole people. When it is a question of settling private disputes, everyone is equal before the law; When it is a question of putting one person before another in positions of public responsibility, what counts is not membership of a particular class, but the actual ability which the man possesses. No one . . . is kept [out of government] because of poverty.”
—Pericles, as recorded by Thucydides,
History of the Peloponnesian War
Why did Pericles call his government a democracy?
a.
Only rich people could vote.
b.
Power belonged to the whole people.
c.
Public offices were for men only.
d.
none of these
Please select the best answer from the choices provided
A
B
C
D
Answers
Pericles’ Funeral Oration
“Our constitution is called a democracy because power is in the hands not of a minority but of the whole people. When it is a question of settling private disputes, everyone is equal before the law; When it is a question of putting one person before another in positions of public responsibility, what counts is not membership of a particular class, but the actual ability which the man possesses. No one . . . is kept [out of government] because of poverty.”
—Pericles, as recorded by Thucydides,
History of the Peloponnesian War
Why did Pericles call his government a democracy?
a.
Only rich people could vote.
b.
Power belonged to the whole people.
c.
Public offices were for men only.
d.
none of these
Please select the best answer from the choices provided
A
B
C
D