As Athens was the first Democratic establishment in a sense, it encouraged its citizens (a certain class) to participate in the decisions of the state. With such initiatives, Athenian philosophers realized that they need to consider not only moral philosophy for the individual but also the polis as a whole – this led to the forming of political philosophy as a branch of Greek philosophy in the 4th century BCE.
Since it derived from moral philosophy, Greek philosophers aimed to define what virtue means for the state, how can it be enforced and what role should the authorities play in ensuring that the citizens can live a good life. This field of ethics was named politics – ‘things to do with the polis’ and followed the base idea of eudemonia. Similar to as we know it today, political philosophy was concerned to make the exchange between an individual and the state a beneficial one for society and the greater good.
