Editing Sophist (section)

===Democracy===
The sophists' rhetorical techniques were useful for any young nobleman seeking public office. The societal roles the sophists filled had important ramifications for the Athenian political system. The historical context provides evidence for their considerable influence, as Athens became more and more democratic during the period in which the sophists were most active.<ref>Blackwell, Christopher. [http://www.stoa.org/projects/demos/home?greekEncoding=UnicodeC "Demos: Classical Athenian Democracy"]. 28 February 2003. The Stoa: a Consortium for Scholarly Publication in the Humanities. 25 April 2007.</ref>

Even though Athens was already a flourishing democracy before their arrival, the cultural and psychological contributions of the sophists played an important role in the growth of Athenian democracy. Sophists contributed to the new democracy in part by espousing expertise in public deliberation, the foundation of decision-making, which allowed—and perhaps required—a tolerance of the beliefs of others. This liberal attitude would naturally have made its way into the Athenian assembly as sophists began acquiring increasingly high-powered clients.<ref>Sprague, Rosamond Kent, ''The Older Sophists'', Hacker Publishing Company ({{ISBN|0-87220-556-8}}), p. 32</ref> Continuous rhetorical training gave the citizens of Athens "the ability to create accounts of communal possibilities through persuasive speech".<ref>[[Susan Jarratt|Jarratt, Susan C.]] ''Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Refigured''. Carbondale and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991, p. 98</ref> This was important for the democracy, as it gave disparate and sometimes superficially unattractive views a chance to be heard in the Athenian assembly.

In addition, sophists had a great impact on the early development of [[law]], as the sophists were the first lawyers in the world. Their status as lawyers was a result of their highly developed skills in argument.<ref>Martin, Richard. "Seven Sages as Performers of Wisdom". ''[[Cultural Poetics in Archaic Greece]]''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. 108–130.</ref>