The Greek House and the Ideology of Citizenship

Author(s): Ruth Westgate

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Source: World Archaeology, Vol. 39, No. 2, The Archaeology of Equality (Jun., 2007), pp. 229245
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The Greek house and the ideology

of citizenship
RuthWestgate

Abstract
This paper exploresthe relationshipbetweenthe egalitarianideologyof the Greekpolls and the
courtyardhouse. The polls was a 'corporate'statein
developmentof the complex,self-contained
whichpowerwas sharedamong a body of nominallyequal citizens,ratherthan beingcentralized
in thehands of an individualor smallgroup.Elevatingthecitizenmale to thestatusof head of an
or tiesof patronage,was one of theways in
household,freefromoutsideinterference
independent
whichthisequalitywas fostered;the enclosedformof the courtyardhouse advertisedits owner's
foraccess to power.The
autonomyand adherenceto sharedmoral codes, and thushis eligibility
fornew housingto be arrangedin regulargrid-plansalso suggestsa desireto avoid kinpreference
ofthe
based patternsofresidence,replacingthemwitha newkindof solidaritybased on membership
citizengroup.

Keywords
Greece;polls;house;courtyard;
citizenship;
equality.

Aristotleregardedthe householdas the basic unit of thepolls {Politics 1253b),and the

formoftheGreekcourtyardhousehas oftenbeenlinkedto thedevelopment
characteristic
and equality.The appearancein theGreekworldof
ofthestateand itsidealsofcitizenship
houses centredaround a courtyard,firstattestedat Zagora on Andros in
multi-roomed
thelate eighthcenturyBC (Figs 1 and 2), has been identified
by Ian Morris(1998: 24-9,
1999:esp. 311,2000: 145-50,280-6) as one of manychangesin materialculturerelatedto
the emergingidea of thepolls as a communityof citizens.Morrislinksthe new typeof
house to theriseof a 'middlingideology'whichpromotedequalitybetweenmenpartlyby
emphasison birthas theprimarydeterminant
excludingwomen,rejectingthearistocratic
of status.In contrast,AlexandraCoucouzeli (2004, in press) sees the earliestcourtyard
of largerkin
familiesformedby thefragmentation
housesas theresidencesof aristocratic
aristocratic
ethos
of
male
their
to
an
honour
which
and
attributes
design
groups(gene),
13 Routledqe

|\ Tayior&Franciscroup

WorldArchaeologyVol. 39(2): 229-245 TheArchaeology

ofEquality
2007 Taylor & Francis ISSN 0043-8243 print/1470-1375online

DOI: 10.1080/00438240701257671

230 Ruth Westgate

was imitatedby upwardlymobilenon-aristocrats.
Both see the appearanceof courtyard
houses as thefirstmanifestation
of ideas about gendereddomesticspace thatare familiar
fromthe literarysources of the Classical period. The developed,Classical formof the
courtyardhouse (Fig. 3) has been linkedby Lisa Nevett(1999: esp. 167-8) to theconcept
of citizenshipassociatedwiththepolls, specifically
to the need to ensurefemalechastity
and thelegitimatetransmission
of citizenstatus,whileHoepfnerand Schwandner(1994)
have interpreted
thegridplans of some Classical cities,withtheirrepetitive
rowsof equalsizedhouses,as an expressionof thedemocraticideal of isonomia(equalitybeforethelaw:
Fig. 4).
This paper aims to clarifysome of thewaysin whichGreekdomesticarchitecture
was
the
the
that
of
of
and
in
the
ideal
shapedby
development
concept citizenship,
particularby
access to powershould be sharedequallybetweenthemale membersof thecitizenbody
will
(Aristotle,Politics1259b.l-10, 1261a.30-b6,1279a.9-13,1287a.l6-20). The argument
make use of the model of 'corporatepoliticaleconomy'proposed by Richard Blanton
theoriesof stateformation
(1998) as a way of bridgingthegap betweenneo-evolutionary
based on systemsanalysis,whichassume increasingcentralcontrolby a ruleror narrow
elite(Flannery1972),and politicalcommunitieslike the Greekpolls,wherepoweris less
centralized.It has oftenbeen observedthatthepolls does not fitneatlyintoconventional
definitionsof the state (e.g. Jameson 1990a: 109; Morris 1991, 1997), and some
archaeologistsand historianswould deny that it qualifiesas a state at all (e.g. Marcus
1998:89-93; Berent2000). Blanton(1998,esp. 152;cf.also Morris1991:43-5) arguesthat
egalitariancommunitieslike the polls are states because theyhave a formalauthority
structure,but that Flannery's model of centralizationis of only limited use for
them.To understandhow such decentralizedstateswork,he distinguishes
understanding
variousdifferent
modes of powerand identifies
a rangeof strategiesassociatedwitheach
between'intermember
(Blanton 1998: 141-8,tables5.1-5.4). He drawsa basic distinction
exclusionarydomination',in whichpoweris wieldedby individualson thebasis of their
such as
personal social connections,and 'systemicpower', in whichformalinstitutions
laws and bureaucracieslimitthepossibilityof exercising
intermember
The
systemic
power.
mode of power is furtherdivided into two types,'exclusionary',wherethe systemis
designedto ensurethe dominationof a singleruleror rulinggroup,and 'corporate',in
which access to power is more widelydistributedand thereare measuresto limitthe
potentialforanyindividualor groupto monopolizeit.Thesemodesofpowermayoperate
in the same societyto varyingdegrees,eithercoexistingor in competition
simultaneously
witheach other.By observinghow thebalance betweenthemshiftsovertimeand how the
different
power strategiesare deployed,we can gain a more nuanced and dynamic
understandingof political structuresthan the conventionalneo-evolutionary
typology
allows.
Blanton(1998: 154-70,table 5.4) identifies
fiveprincipalstrategies
used to promotethe
corporatemode of power,all of whichcan be recognizedin Archaicand Classicalpoleis.
The first,assembly government,is a common featureof Greek poleis, though the
constitution
and powersof theassemblyvariedfromplace to place. The secondstrategy
is
corporateregulationof sourcesof power,whichmaytakemanyforms,bothmaterialand
of stateoffice-holders
symbolic:in theGreekcontext,examplesincludetheaccountability
the
of
the
of
which
redirected
thepatronageof
through system euthuna; practice liturgies,

The Greekhouseand theideologyof citizenship 231

the decentralization
of access to prestigegoods by
the wealthytowardsthe community;
means of a marketeconomy;and the eliminationof exclusionarycontrolover religious
ritualby bringingit out of the ruler'shouse into communalspace (Mazarakis Ainian
1997). Anothercommonmeans of spreadingaccess to power is to base it on exemplary
moralor ritualbehaviour,ratherthanon wealthor status,thusopeningup politicaloffice
to a widersectionof society:in Classical Athens- thestatewe knowmostabout - those
appointedto public officehad to undergovetting(dokimasia),whichrequiredthemto
prove thattheyhad met theirpublic and privateobligations([Aristotle],Constitution
of
Athens55.2-4), and certaintypesof immoralbehaviourcould be punishedby exclusion
frompublic space and political activity(atimia, literally'loss of honour': Aischines,
AgainstTimarchos18-31). In orderto ensureproperobservationof such moral codes, a
whichenablesthecommunity
is required,namelyreflexive
thirdstrategy
communication,
in
of
to monitorand regulatethebehaviour those power.Blantonsuggeststhatthemoral
order in Greek societywas monitoredby the philosophers,but gossip and drama,
especiallycomedywithits public lampooningof prominentfigures,wereprobablymore
importantin ensuringthat individualsinvolvedin public life met expectedstandards
is ritualsanctification
ofthemoral
(Hunter1990;Morris2000: 134-8). The fourthstrategy
code and ritualizationof political procedures: Blanton cites the oaths sworn by
magistratesenteringofficein Classical Athens, and one mightadd the prayersand
thatopened meetingsof politicalbodies such as the assembly,counciland law
offerings
courts(Parker2005: 99-104,403-8), and thedevelopmentof cultshonouringappropriate
political concepts such as Demos (the people), Demokratia, Themis (Law) and her
daughtersDike (Justice)and Eunomia (Good Order). Blanton's fifthstrategyis the
in lower-order
ofpowerbythepromotionof semi-autonomy
decentralization
sub-systems:
an obvious exampleis Kleisthenes'creationin Atticaof demes (villages)withtheirown
This is notto say thatthecorporatemode ofpowerwas
politicaland religiousinstitutions.
of
theonlyone thatoperatedin theGreekpoleis:evenin democraticAthens,thestrategies
eliminated
from
life
1981:
were
never
intermember
88-131;
political
(Davies
entirely
power
Millett1989).
The developmentof Greek houses fromthe eighthto the fourthcenturyBC can be
understoodin the lightof thesecorporatepower strategies(Hoepfnerand Schwandner
1994; Lang 1996; Mazarakis Ainian 1997; Morris 1998; Hoepfner1999; Nevett1999). In
theEarlyIron Age (tenthto eighthcenturiesBC),mosthousesconsistedof a singleroom,
sometimeswitha porch,and all domesticactivitiesmusthave takenplace eitherin this
room or in the open space outsidethe house (as at Zagora: Fig. la). But fromthe late
eighthcenturyonwards,thehouseholdseemsto turninwardsand withdrawfrompublic
centurywere convertedinto
space. At Zagora, the one-roomhouses of the mid-eighth
or
so
a
houses
within
generation
(Fig. lb; Cambitoglouet al. 1971,
courtyard-centred
1988),and from700 onwardssimplecourtyardhouses werebuiltat sitesall around the
Aegean (Fig. 2), althoughthe one-roomtyperemainsthemost commonthroughoutthe
Archaicperiod (Nevett2003: 18, fig.3). The courtyardwould have provideda private
theneedformembersof thehouseholdto use
outdoorarea fordomestictasks,eliminating
communalspace. The new-stylehouses had more than one room,usuallytwo or three,
whichseem to have been used fordifferent
rangesof functions:in some cases the extra
rooms providedincreasedstoragespace (e.g. at Zagora, and perhaps also at Vroulia:

232 Ruth Westgate

Figure1 Zagora, Andros: unitsH24-25-32and H26-27 (courtesyA. Cambitoglou).a: phase 1, c.

775-725 BC; b: phase 2, late eighthcenturyBC.

Cambitoglouet al. 1988: 154^8; Kinch 1914: 112-62, esp. 123), and theyalso made it
possibleforformaleatingand drinkingto be keptseparatefromserviceactivities(as at
Zagora and Thorikos:Fusaro 1982; Westgatein prep.).

The Greekhouseand theideologyof citizenship 233

Figure 2 Archaic courtyard houses (drawings by Howard Mason), a: Thorikos, Attica,

Subgeometricperiod (afterMussche et al. 1967: plan II); b: Vroulia, Rhodes, seventhcentury
BC (afterLang 1996: fig.64); c: Aigina,houses near the Temple of Apollo, sixthcenturyBC (after
Lang 1996: fig.23).

The appearanceof theself-contained

courtyardhousecan be seenas evidenceforone of
thestrategiesassociatedwiththecorporatemode of power,namelythepromotionof the
household as a semi-autonomoussub-system.It seems likely that Early Iron Age
weredominatedby powerfularistocraticindividuals,variouslyimaginedas
communities

234 Ruth Westgate

Figure2 (Continued).

kings,chiefsor 'Big Men' (Morris 1987,2000; Whitley1991; Mazarakis Ainian 1997). In

thelate eighthcentury,a sharpincreasein thenumberof burialshas been interpreted
as
indicate
the
the
breakdown
of
an
elite
on
formal
which
burial,
reflecting
might
monopoly
emergenceoftheidea thatpowershouldbe sharedmorewidelyand equallywithina group
of male citizens(Morris 1987,2000). The appearanceof courtyardhouses at aroundthe
same timemay be anotherindicationof thisshiftin values: ratherthanbeinga powerful
man's dependant,each man was elevated to the status of head of an independent
householdin his own right.The enclosedformof the courtyardhouse suggestsa more
stronglydefinedconceptionof the privatesphereand a desireto assertcontrolover the
space used by the household,while the increasedprovisionof space for storagemay
reflecta greateremphasison the ideal of selfas a way of avoidingdepensufficiency
dence. The household's food supply was oftendisplayedin jars with elaborate relief
decoration,which also appear in the late eighthcenturyand are aptly describedby
Ebbinghaus(2005) as 'conspicuousstorage';and Hesiod, writingaround 700, repeatedly
stressestheneed to storeenoughproduceto ensurethesecurityof thehousehold( Works
and Days 361-7, 391-400,473-8): the'houseless'man mustworkforanother(aoikos thes,
600-2).
Each man's newly empoweredstatus as head of an independenthousehold was
bolsteredby a sharpeningof the distinctionsbetweenmen and women and freeand
slave, which cut across the traditionaldivide between aristocratsand commoners

The Greekhouseand theideologyof citizenship 235

(Morris 2000: 185). The household was the most importantarena in which these
werearticulated:themoreenclosedand compartmentalized
distinctions
plans of Archaic
reflect
a
of
control
over
women
houses
greaterdegree
(Fusaro 1982;
probably
courtyard
Morris1999;Coucouzeliin press),eveniftheseclusionof thehouse interiorwas notyetas
pronouncedas it was to become in the Classical period (Nevett2003: 17-18), and the
betweenfreeand slave
subdivisionof thehouse would also have facilitateddifferentiation
membersof the household(Westgatein prep.). Michael Jameson(1990a: 108-9, 1990b:
195; cf. also Pesando 1987: 148-9) has suggestedthat the independentaristocratic
in theHomericpoems,was themodelfortheideal
household,bothrealand as represented
citizenhouse of the Classical period;in theseearlycourtyardhouses we can perhapssee
thebeginningof a processby whicheach man became,as it were,an Odysseusin his own
domain.
withthecitizenmale
Certainlytheidea thatthehouseholdwas likea statein miniature,
in laterliterarysources.The analogybetweenhouseholdand state
as itsruler,is reflected
runsthroughthefirstbook of Aristotle'sPolitics,and in his analysisof different
typesof
the
the
head
he
of
in
human
communities
relations
authority
repeatedlycompares
power
In
the
state.
he
characterizes
of
that
of
the
ruler
of
a
to
of a household
general
power the
seniorman in the household as similarto that of a king over his subjects(1252b.20,
theauthorityof a husbandoverhis wife,
1255b.20, 1285b.30-5), thoughhe differentiates
of thepolis
is
like
the
shared
more
he
which, argues,
powerexercisedin the government
all
of
are
of
the
view
that
Aristotle's
criticism
types power essentially
(1259a.40-1259b.17).
the same impliesthat the analogy betweenhousehold and state was widelyaccepted
{Politics1252a.7-17; Nagle 2006: 15-18), and in accordancewiththisanalogy the term
oikonomia- literally'household management'- came to refer to the economic
managementof thestate:thus,althoughtwo of thethreebooks of Oikonomikaattributed
to Aristotle'sfollowersare concernedwithdomesticlife,one is devotedto statefinance,
from'private'oikonomia(II. 2). The statewas also used
whichis carefullydistinguished
more loosely as a metaphorfor the household. Xenophon's Ischomachos,instructing
his youngwifein domesticmanagement,helps her to organizethe householdgoods 'by
tribes'(OikonomikosIX.6-8), and comparesthe successfulhouseholdto a well-runpolis,
withthe wifeas nomophylax('guardian of the laws', IX. 14-15). Comedy,predictably,
turnsthe metaphoron its head and reduces the state to the domesticscale: in the
Knights,AristophanesdepictsAthens as a household headed by the old man Demos
('the people'), who is initiallybullied and flatteredby his slaves (modelled on leading
politicalfiguresof the day), but is eventuallyrejuvenatedand restoredto his proper
authority;and in Wasps(lines764-1002) Philokleonestablishesa law courtin his house,
with himselfas juror, to settle a dispute between his dogs (who also represent
politicians).
contemporary
Even in real life,therewereoccasionswhena man was entitledto take thelaw intohis
thatin thisarea the staterelinquished
own hands withinhis household.It is significant
to kill someonewho violatedhis house in
its monopolyoverforce:a man was permitted
theft(Lysias 1.30, 36; Demosthenes14.113;
adulteryand, undercertaincircumstances,
Cohen 1983: 72-9). Simplyenteringanotherman's house withouthis permissioncould
be regardedas an act of hybrisagainst him, which diminishedhis honour, as the
betrayedhusband Euphiletosinsists(Lysias 1.4, 25; for the definitionof hybris,Fisher

236 Ruth Westgate

1992: esp. 1); likewise the speaker in Demosthenes 47 emphasizes the outrageous
behaviourof Euergosand his companions,who twiceenteredhis house whilehe was not
there(53, 56, 63), contrastingthe proprietyof Hagnophilos,who 'did not thinkit right
[to enter]in the absence of the master',even to help (60). There was a strongideal, in
Athensat least, that the communityshould not intervenein how the householdlived
(ThucydidesII. 37.2-3; cf. Herodotos III. 83.2-3), althoughin practicethis sometimes
conflictedwiththe expectationof exemplarymoralityon the part of those involvedin
public life.The enclosingwalls of thecourtyardhouse guardedthe household'sfreedom
frominterference
and patronage,whichunderpinnedthe politicalauthorityof its male
head.
Some responsibility
forreligiousritualsalso devolvedto the householdand its head,
whichrepresentsanothercommon corporatepower strategy,limitingthe potentialfor
any individualor group to monopolizethe supernaturalsphere(Blanton 1998: 160-1).
evidence,each Classicalhouseholdhad itsowncults,whichincluded,
Accordingto literary
in
one
honour of Zeus Ktesios ('Zeus of Property'),who protectedthe
significantly,
contentsofthestoreroom,
theguaranteeofthehousehold'sindependence(Parker2005: 9to recognize,though
36; Brule 2005; archaeologicaltracesof domesticcult are difficult
altarsare fairlycommon:Morgan 2004). The head of thehouseholdwas also responsible
forperforming
ritesin honourof his family'sdead ancestors:everycitizen,not just the
had
aristocracy, a lineageworthyof commemoration.
On a more symboliclevel, the courtyardhouse may have served to advertisethe
occupants' adherence to collectivemoral codes, in accordance with another of the
strategiesassociated with the corporate mode of power, in which exemplarymoral
behaviourratherthan social statusdeterminesaccess to power (Blanton 1998: 159-60).
The Greekword oikosmeantboth 'house' and 'household',and thephysicalhouse could
standforthereputationof itsownerand his family,as is clearfromthepracticeof razing
thehouse of a disgracedcitizen(Connor 1985). By thelate fifth
centuryBC,ifnot before,
houses were hidden behind high walls, usually pierced only by a singleentranceand
perhapssome small,highwindows(Figs 3 and 4; Nevett1999: 158-61,2003; Morris1999
and Coucouzeli in presssee thisas an earlierdevelopment).These featureswereprobably
intendedto keep thewomenof thehouseholdout of thesightof unrelatedmales (Nevett
1999: 68-74), and, althoughit is unlikelythatwomenwere as strictly
confinedas some
sources
the
blank
facade
the
its smallnumber
of
with
house,
literary
imply(Cohen 1989),
ofopenings,wouldhave beena clearstatement
ofthepropriety
oftheoccupant'sdomestic
arrangements,which ensured the chastityof his female relativesand his children's
to citizenstatus.
legitimacyand entitlement
The blank public facade presentedby Classical houses may also have indicatedthe
owner'swillingness
to conformto an ethosof egalitarianism.
Althoughfromthelate fifth
centuryonwardsthereis evidenceforan increasingamountof decorationinsidehouses,in
theformof wall paintings,mosaicsand columns(Walter-Karydi1994;Westgate1997-8),
thereis littleor no evidencefordecorationof the frontage- no columnsor pediments
or
framingdoorwayslike thoseadorninggrandRoman houses,no fancywindow-frames
painted or moulded stucco (Walter-Karydi1994: 27-31). Even in the richestsurviving
Classical houses, at Eretria,embellishments
like lion-headgutter-spouts
and miniature
columnsframing
windowswereapparentlyconfinedto theinterior(Ducreyet al. 1993:68;

The Greekhouseand theideologyof citizenship 237

Figure3 Classical courtyardhouses,a: Athens,Houses C and D neartheGreatDrain, fifth

century
bc (AmericanSchool of Classical Studiesat Athens:Agora Excavations);b: Athens,houses on the
of late fourth-century
northslope of theAreiopagos,conjecturalrestoration
state(AmericanSchool
ofClassicalStudiesat Athens:Agora Excavations);c: Halieis,House 7, fourthcenturyBC (afterAult
2005: fig.7); d: Halieis, House A, fourthcenturyBC (afterAult 2005: fig.10).

238 Ruth Westgate

Figure3 (Continued).

The Greekhouseand theideologyof citizenship 239

Figure4 Olynthos,grid-plannedhouses on the North Hill, late fifthor earlyfourthcenturyBC

(courtesyN. Cahill).

a wealthyhouse froma
Reber 1998: 125). From theoutside,therewas littleto distinguish
poor one, and it seems likelythat this was the resultof a prejudiceagainstprojecting
economic distinctionsbetween households,which is apparent in repeated rhetorical
appeals to thegreatmen of thepast,whose houses were'no moresplendidthanthoseof
theirneighbours'(Demosthenes3.25-6, 13.29-30,23.206-8). The interior,
however,was a
different
matter,and some householdsmay have founda subtleway roundthepressure
against externaldisplay: it is generallythoughtthat the elaboratelydecorated dining

240 Ruth Westgate

roomsfoundin some Classical housesare locatedadjacentto thestreetso thattheycould
be litby windowsin theoutsidewall (e.g. Fig. 3c; Fig. 4, housesAl, A6, A.viii.l, A.vii.4
and severalin blockA.vi; Robinsonand Graham 1938: 177-9),butdinnerpartieswenton
intothenight,and it is temptingto wonderwhetherit was just as importantto make the
lightand noise obvious to passers-by.
The way in whichthehouse advertisedthe occupants'subscription
to corporateideals
be
in
understood
terms
of
Hillier
and
Hanson's
may
usefully
(1984: 144-5, 158-63)
concept of 'transpatialsolidarity',in whichmembershipof a class is expressedby the
reproductionof a standard spatial patterninside the house, combined with strong
enforcementof the boundary betweenthe house and the exterior,which limitsthe
withpeople nearby;in contrast,'spatialsolidarity'is based
potentialforcasual interaction
on proximity,
and is fosteredby weakerboundarycontrolsand a relatively
unstructured
interior,whichpermitfreeinteractionbetweeninhabitantsand neighbours.Hillierand
Hanson citeas a exampleof spatialsolidaritythetraditionalBritishworking-class
house,
with the frontdoor standingopen, while transpatialsolidarityis representedby the
middle-classhouse,whose interior,revealedat nightlike a stageset throughuncurtained
windows,is accessibleonlyto invitedvisitors.In thelightof this,thedevelopmentof the
a shiftfromspatial to transpatial
courtyardhouse in Greece mightbe seen as reflecting
as
the
basis
of
The
unstructured
interiors
and weak boundariesof Early
solidarity
society.
Iron Age housesare likelyto have fosteredspatialsolidaritybetweenneighbouring
households,whichmayhave complemented
personalconnectionssuchas kinshipor patronage:
in theCretanvillageof Vronda,forinstance,each clusterof housesevolvedfroma single
originalhouse,and Kevin Glowacki(in press)suggeststhattheywereoccupiedbyfamilies
descendedfromthesame household;similarly,
therehave been attemptsto recognizekin
in
the
of
the
houses
at
groups
arrangement
Zagora (Cambitoglouet al. 1971: 29-30;
Coucouzeli 2004: 473-6). On the other hand, the compartmentalized
interiorsand
stronglycontrolledboundariesof Classical houses proclaimthe occupants'adherenceto
theideals of propriety
and independenceassociatedwithcitizenship,
and thustheirclaim
to membership
of thecitizenclass. The gridplans adoptedin some Classicalcities(suchas
to an extreme,
Olynthos:Fig. 4) could be seenas takingtranspatialsolidarity
subordinating
householdsto an entirely
abstractpatternin whicheach is theoretically
in
interchangeable,
order to demonstratethe rejectionof personal ties betweenhouseholdswhich might
threatenthesolidarityand equalityof thecitizengroup- thoughthisdoubtlessrepresents
theideal oftheplannersratherthanthereality,as thepresenceofclustersofsimilarhouses
at Olynthossuggeststhatit was stillpossibleforhouseholdsto organizethemselvesinto
groupsof some sort(Cahill 2002: 209-22).
Conclusions
It would be problematicto suggest that courtyardhouses can be interpretedas
evidencefor egalitarianideals wherevertheyoccur, althoughBlanton (1998: 168) cites
similarexamplesfromMexico and China. Thereare otherpossiblereasonsforthechoice
of thistypeof house, whichare not mutuallyexclusive.Climateis an importantfactor,
and the
one, as Rapoport(1969: esp. 18-24) has demonstrated,
thoughnot a determining

The Greekhouseand theideologyof citizenship 241

intolimitedspace withoutdeprivingthem
courtyardallowshousesto be packed efficiently
of lightand air (Mazarakis Ainian 2001). Fletcher(1995: 135) has identified
courtyard
houses as a common featureof early urban communitiesbecause they insulate the
the flow of visual and auditoryinforhousehold fromthe outside world, restricting
mationin orderto reducethe stressof livingin a denselypopulated settlement.
All of
thesefactorsare likelyto have encouragedthe adoption of the courtyardhouse in the
is shaped
growingtownsofArchaicGreece,but thedevelopmentof domesticarchitecture
between
such
universal
the
needs
and
interplay
practical
particularsymbolicor
by
ideological requirements,and thus similar architecturalforms may have different
societies.In the case of Archaic and Classical Greece, literary
meaningsin different
of the courtyardhouse as the
evidence provides the context for an interpretation
of a 'corporate'power strategywhichpromotedequalityof
manifestation
architectural
access to politicalpowerby investingeach man withauthorityas head of an independent
his
household.Both theinternallayoutof thehouse and its outwardappearancereflected
which
determined
his
to
in
of
moral
the
observation
codes,
suitability
participate
proper
politicalcommunity.
Associatingthe courtyardhouse with the ideal of equal access to power withina
levelled
boundedcitizengroup- of whateversize - overcomesone of themajorcriticisms
at Hoepfnerand Schwandner's(1994) theorythatthe equal size and repetitive
plans of
citiesweretheexpressionof democraticideology,namely
housesin Classical grid-planned
thatnot all plannedcitiesweredemocracies,and converselythatthereis no evidencefor
an egalitarianhousingpolicyin themostradicaldemocracyof all, Athens:thehouses in
Figure3a and 3b showconsiderablevariationin size and elaboration,and thesmallerones
are by no meansthe smallestknown(Ferrucci1996; Cahill 2002: 194-222; Shipley2005:
368-73). Moreover,iftheplan and appearanceof thehouse wereintendedto advertisethe
occupants'adherenceto sharedmoraland politicalvalues and thustheirclaimto a share
of power, the basic similarityof house plans both withinand betweencities can be
explainedas theproductof individualchoiceon thepartof theowners,withoutresorting
to the assumptionthatthe internallayoutof houses was somehowdictatedby a central
authority.
This is not to suggest,however,that only citizenslived in courtyardhouses: resident
(metics),manyof whomwerecitizensof otherpoleis,maywellhave subscribed
foreigners
to the same ideals as the citizensand lived in the same type of house (the Syracusan
Kephalos, forinstance,livedin a courtyardhouse in Piraeus:Plato, Republic
immigrant
no doubtmanycitizenshad to makedo withhousesthatdivergedfrom
328c). Conversely,
theideal,whichmayoftengo undetectedin thearchaeologicalrecordbecause theydo not
thatthecourtyardhouse is
correspondto the'normal'courtyardpattern.But it is striking
of the householdwere
less prevalentin Crete,wherethe autonomyand self-sufficiency
compromisedby communal provision of food and education. Classical and early
Hellenistichouses at some Cretan sites, such as Lato, resemblethe more open and
and the political
houses of the Early Iron Age (Westgateforthcoming),
unstructured
limited:
seems
to
have
been
more
controlson the
household
head
of
the
of
the
authority
exerciseof intermember
powerin Cretanpoleis werenotoriouslyweak (Aristotle,Politics
courtyard
1272b.2-15).In contrast,in otherpartsof Greece,theenclosed,self-contained
housecan be seenas theembodimentof theideal of thehouseholdas a semi-autonomous,

242 Ruth Westgate

self-sufficient
unitunderthecontrolof thecitizenmale,who thusgainedtheauthorityto
participateas an equal in thepoliticalcommunity.

Acknowledgements

This paper formspart of the project'Strategies,Structuresand Ideologies of the Built

Environment',directedby Nick Fisher and JamesWhitleyat CardiffUniversityand
fundedbytheBritishAcademyand theArtsand HumanitiesResearchBoard. I wouldlike
to thank Nick Fisher and Robin Osborne for theircommentson earlierdrafts,and
Howard Mason, Ian Dennis and Nicholas Cahill forproducingtheillustrations.
CF10 3EU
, Cardiff,
CardiffSchool of Historyand Archaeology,
CardiffUniversity
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RuthWestgateis Lecturerin Archaeologyand AncientHistoryat CardiffUniversity.

Her
researchfocuses on the social, political and economic aspects of Greek and Roman
and interiordecoration,and she has recently
co-editeda conference
domesticarchitecture
these
Communities:
Settlement
and Societyin
volumeexploring
House,
themes,Building
theAegeanand Beyond(BritishSchool at Athens,in press).