Ifyou walk around Washington DC or any state capital, the architecture will try to tell you something. You’ll likely see a lot of white marble, “tall columns, symmetrical shapes, triangular pediments, and domed roofs,” all of which, according to the Architect of the Capitol, are markers of the neoclassical style, meant to remind us of the birthplace of democracy: ancient Athens.
The message is clear: we are the heirs of the first democracy, and the spirit of Athenian democracy is alive inside these walls.