Is democracy as a way of life a characteristic of athens, sparta, or both?
a.
athens
b.
sparta
c.
athens and sparta

The answer is A. Athens.  It is a symbol of democracy in ancient Greece.   Democracy was started by Solon in 594 B.C. with several reforms.  These reforms were poor people were given the right to vote and the creation of a court of appeals to review cases.  Cleisthenes added more reforms such as the creation of demes or self-governing communities that were combined into ten tribes of equal wealth and population.  A Council of 500 was created from these ten tribes as well as a board of ten generals were also established to handle military affairs. A system of Ostracism was set up to prevent tyrants from gaining power.  Athenians are also patrons of the arts and believe that the state helps individuals not the other way around.