Against the prevailing view that structures and values of democratic Athens left no room, at least relevant, to the practices of patronage and evergetism, the fourth century BC sources, particularly oratory, appear to show that the... more
Against the prevailing view that structures and values of democratic Athens left no room, at least relevant, to the practices of patronage and evergetism, the fourth century BC sources, particularly oratory, appear to show that the relationships created between benefactors and beneficiaries responded to the generally accepted concept of clientelistic relations. From our understanding, patronage and evergetism were fundamental tools in the oligarchic "surveillance" on the Athenian democratic politeia during this century.
