The Golden Age of Athenian Democracy and the Origins of the Demagogue-Tyrant Paradigm

Abstract

A long-standing belief among classical scholars is that antidemocratic thinking was a relatively “late birth” as it emerged only during the Peloponnesian War in the aftermath of the disastrous Athenian military fiascos. This paper contests that perspective. One of the most well-known criticisms of popular rule in the Classical period was that it enabled power-hungry demagogues to undermine established norms and laws, incite the masses against the upper classes, provoke civil war, and ultimately establish a tyrannical rule. The article seeks to elucidate how the foundations of this demagogue-tyrant paradigm were paradoxically established during the Golden Age of Athenian democracy. Furthermore, it will argue that intra-democratic discussions on the nature of desirable and undesirable political leadership significantly shaped this development.