Citizenship Through History: Rights, Duties, and Models
The Greek Polis: Birthplace of Citizenship
In the fifth century BC, the Greek polis, or city-state, recognized a number of rights and duties for its free male citizens. These citizens took responsibility for education and training in public life matters, directly and actively participating in governance through dialogue and discussion. They laid down rules for better living, aiming to build a more just society. The polis was considered necessary for the family, tribe, and rational human beings to live well and seek the truth. It was a community that aspired to achieve justice and good for its people. This society required fair laws and a power structure, needs met through just laws considered ethically good. Practicing virtue was based on these just laws and a just community. Education was essential to form the critical capacity of individuals regarding Virtue, Truth, and the Good.
Hellenistic Philosophy: Universal Humanity
Later, Hellenistic philosophy extended the concept of the citizen to accept a common and universal human nature. Every human was considered a citizen of the world. Reason dictated universal human rights, and society established rights of justice and kindness, along with duties directed towards the good and utility of the community.
Citizenship in the Roman Empire
In the Roman Empire, the individual was legally recognized as a citizen, granted certain rights, and required to act according to the law. The Roman citizen was a subject of the Empire, under authorities, some of whom were regularly elected. Roman law established and strengthened the concept of citizenship.
The Middle Ages: From Citizen to Subject
During the Middle Ages, the concept of citizenship based on equality diminished. Christianity emphasized the role of subjects rather than citizens. Human society was seen as inherently flawed, reflecting a divine hierarchy with God at the apex.
The Renaissance: Seeds of Change
The Renaissance began freeing individuals from strict religious and feudal controls.
The Enlightenment: Rights and Social Contracts
During the Enlightenment, social, legal, political, and ethical aspects became key components of citizens’ rights and duties. Contractarian theories of the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries conceived society, politics, and law as a covenant between free and rational men, regulated by a pact imposing mutual duties. Society exists to serve individuals. Authority is legitimate only in areas delegated to it by the people through this covenant.
Modern Models of Citizenship
The Liberal Model
The liberal model of citizenship gives priority to individual rights and freedoms, prioritizing private life over political power and the public sphere. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen of 1789 states that law is an expression of the general will. All citizens have an equal right to hold public office, based only on their virtues and talents. Equality evolved into a social, political, economic, and cultural goal, enabling every human to live with dignity.
The Republican Model
The republican model of citizenship views each citizen as part of the political community where personal and social identity develops. The public and political sphere is essential for the individual. The freedom of each citizen is linked to others through free and equal laws established by consensus.
Universal Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 expanded upon the legal rights established in 1789, adding social, economic, and cultural rights for all people, further shaping the modern understanding of citizenship and rights.