Jacket copy
In ancient Greece, demokratia meant “rule by the people”—but what people, and how did they rule? Scholars have long argued that demokratia signified the rule of all adult male citizens over themselves. In Demos, Daniela Cammack counters this view by arguing that demokratia meant rule by the crowd that assembled when a public meeting was held. This crowd was the demos, which the Greeks distinguished from orators, generals, councilors, public benefactors, and other civic leaders. Drawing on literary and epigraphical evidence as well as the key theoretical insights of Aristotle and Hobbes, Cammack explains how constantly changing masses of ordinary ancient Greek men ruled while their leaders were ruled over.
This political system relied on kratos, the power to prevail militarily, epitomized by the victories of the Athenian demos in civil conflicts around 508 and 404 BC. In peacetime, the superior strength of the demos revealed itself in large, frequently summoned crowds of ordinary citizens acting as policymakers, legislators, and (crucially) judges, who wielded great power over politicians. Aristotle characterized the years 403 to 322 as the era of “ultimate democracy,” and it was during this period that the Athenians pulled off a feat unmatched by modern democrats: making use of talented and ambitious leaders without being ruled by them. By contrast, the Greeks called rule by elected office-holders “oligarchy.” As people today lose faith in democratic institutions, Cammack's account prompts us to ask if we’ve been doing democracy all wrong—or even at all.
Advance Praise
“The book is exciting, important, and original, a must-read for ancient historians and classicists, political scientists, and political philosophers. It will surely spark debate, perhaps even controversy, due to its original and daring arguments. Daniela Cammack brings a truly new perspective to a field that has been exhaustively studied.”—Josine Blok, author of Drawing Lots: From Egalitarianism to Democracy in Ancient Greece
“Looking to 4th century BCE Athenian demokratia for an alternative to modern democracy and treating demos-kratos as the power of a mass to control leaders, hold officials to account, and rule over them, Daniela Cammack flips the script on where and how demos-kratos happens.” —Jill Frank, Cornell University
“Demos makes a bold and intentionally unsettling case: that ancient democracy was, at its core, rule by the masses over social and political elites, exactly as its critics feared—and that this regime type has something essential to teach us as a corrective to our modern elected oligarchies. Erudite without ever being dry, and written with real style, it is a book that forces democratic theory to reckon with a history it has too long domesticated. Required reading for anyone who thinks seriously about what democracy was, and what it could be again.” —Hélène Landemore, author of Politics Without Politicians: The Case for Citizen Rule
“By paying meticulous attention to the full range of ancient writings on the rule of the demos, Daniela Cammack has recovered a lost idea of democracy: the collective power of ordinary citizens over elites. In the process, she shows how impoverished most modern ideas of democracy have become and offers us a glimpse of how we might have genuine democratic sovereignty today. Demos is a tour de force and it will constitute a new starting-point for the study of democracy, ancient and modern.”—Richard Tuck, Harvard University
“Daniela Cammack is a gale of fresh air blowing through the exceptionally lively field of ancient democracy studies. Her brilliant new book goes back to basics, reexamining the precise meaning of the demos. Woe betide anyone rash enough to exercise their democratic right of disagreement.”—Paul Cartledge, author of Democracy: A Life and Pericles: Statesman, Demagogue, Eccentric
Price: $45.00/£38.00
ISBN: 9780691212036
Published (US): Dec 15, 2026
Published (UK): Feb 9, 2027
Copyright: 2027
Pages: 560
Size: 6.13 x 9.25 in.
Illus: 1 b/w illus.