In the present essay we analyse first the emergence of property and individual rights and the theory of a social contract in Classical Greece. We argue that property and individual rights emerged within a democratic macroculture which had as elements 1) the emergence of a new type of a heavy infantry warrior, the hoplite and a new battle formation, the phalanx, 2) religion 3) the athletic games 4) the city-state environment. Contrary to the re-emergence of the theory of social contract during the 18th century European Enlightenment, in Ancient Athens the practice of direct democracy antedated the theory of social contract. We then analyse the practical implementation of a social contract in 4th century Athens through decision making by citizens based on rational choice according to economic considerations.
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