The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 B.C.

The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 B.C. is one of the first games in the Reacting to the Past game series originally created by Mark Carnes, history professor at Barnard College/Columbia University. These games are intended for undergraduate or graduate students led by an instructor (facilitator)

Participants are assigned roles with secret role sheets and secret victory objectives. The object of the game is to achieve the stated objective for each player.

The game is set in Athens soon after the tyrants installed by Sparta were overthrown. The game focuses upon the future of democracy in Athens. Participants are given a variety of roles: moderate democrats, radical democrats, oligarchs, Socratics and more.

Participants need read and refer to Plato's Republic (not included) and excerpts (included) from Thucydides, Xenophon, and other primary sources.

The game requires substantial reading, writing, and verbal debate.

Awards: The Reacting to the Past series won the 2004 Hesburgh Award for innovative undergraduate education using gaming.

The American Historical Association awarded the 2006 William Gilbert Award to Mark C. Carnes for the best article on teaching history--focusing upon the Reacting to the Past games.