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Greeks in ancient western civilization
Greeks in ancient western civilization
Essay on ancient greeks
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Greece is a country united by its name, but divided by its ways. Although Sparta and Athens were both Greek cities, their societies were different. Sparta was focused on having a perfect military, whereas Athenian daily life revolved learning and knowledge. When Spartan boys were being trained for an army, Athenian boys were being trained for life. Both of these societies revolved around different government, education from when kids to teenagers, the responsibilities each individual had to keep their spot, and how women played a role throughout each city state.
Sparta was a city-state based on strict military ruling, at the age of seven a young Spartan would start out training and be trained into killing machines. When a Spartan baby is born, high elite Spartan soldiers would observe the baby to see if it was healthy and strong, if not the baby was ill and weak so it would be taken up a mountain and left there to die. This is just one example that shows how Sparta only wants a strong army and doesn't care about anything else. Strict rules of the government made it so that every Sp...
Imagine two countries, so different from each other, that conflicts were inevitable. Athens and Sparta were not countries, however, they were city-states of Greece with many contrasting values. Athens was the city of the arts, reading, and writing. Meanwhile, military was the only thing the on the Spartans’ minds. Athens and Sparta differ in many ways due to their governments, economies, and cultures.
Sparta was known for being strong, but was it really? In case you don’t know, Sparta was a Greek city-state. Sparta only focused on war. Spartans were only taught the basics of other topics. Spartans were trained for 13 years just to fight. Reading and writing were only taught in Sparta for practical reasons. The strengths didn’t outweigh the weaknesses. There were more weaknesses to Sparta than there were strengths. The strengths of Sparta didn’t outweigh the weaknesses for three reasons. The first reason is that the babies were killed just if they looked weak. The second reason is that the Spartans barely new anything about other topics (math, reading, writing, etc). The third and final reason is that the helots outnumbered the Spartans 50 to 1.
Athens and Sparta are both infamous Greek city states. Both could not be more different, yet similar in the way they governed their own city state. Another, main difference was the women’s rights and roles in the system. Athenian and Spartan women both were considered to be second to their male counterparts. Spartan women had more rights than Athenian women. Through, research realizing that the Spartan women were slightly greater role than Athenian women.
lthough it might seem that Athens and Sparta's would have a similar military because both of them were very close to the Aegean sea, but they are very different. Athens had lots of ports in Aegean Sea this made it so they had a very strong navy and they spent a lot of their time in boats. On the other hand though they were not exceptional with their ground troops. In Sparta things are very different than in Athens. Sparta had an excellent army. The boys were trained to fight a soon as they turn seven years old. This made them have one of the best armies of their time. Although they had a great army their navy struggled and lacked success. Athens and Sparta both had their strengths and weaknesses.
Sparta, an ancient Greek city-state, was most well-known for its militaristic lifestyle and its soldiers’ prowess in battle. Though war was an essential part of life in Sparta, many other aspects contributed to its society. Sparta’s origin, unique government, slaves, bold women, and elite warriors all shaped the legendary city-state and defined its culture.
To look at this epistemologically, there is an understanding that almost every aspect involved in this culture was derived for the good of the polis. This seemed to be a very proud and arrogant people. A city with no walls, and in almost certainty, only natural born were allowed to earn citizenship. To even be called a Spartan meant years of fighting, service and status. Tyrtaeus states this argument best in the last line of his work. “Thus a man should endeavor to reach this high place of courage with all his heart, and, so trying, never be backward in war.” These writings are great resources for Spartan’s war enhanced values and societal customs, but lack in evidence of governmental affairs and religion.
Athens and Sparta were two city-states in Greece, but which city-state was actually better? Athens and Sparta were enemies in everything that they did. They always argued which then caused many wars to occur. In Athens they focused on getting a good education, but in Sparta they focused on war and military training. Although they each were good city-states in their own ways, Sparta would be the better city-state to live in rather than Athens.
Secondly, Sparta emphasized on only expanding their power and gaining control over other kingdoms. That is why you didn’t have a choice if you wanted to be in the army or not, they put you in it. Even as a little boy you were taken away from your family and your home at age seven. As soon as you got there you began your training, and you didn’t stop training until you were twenty years old. If you didn’t do what you were told to do you would have major consequences and possible death.
The Athenians and the Spartans were the two rivals of Ancient Greece, Close together on the map but not in what they valued and lifestyles were completely far away from each other. Athens form of government had an assembly where they
Sparta was a society built on ideals that set them apart from every other Greek society, for their impeccably unique mentalities. The Spartan people introduced a new society with the focus on creating the perfect soldier. Sparta, which was also commonly known as Lacedaemon, was an ancient Greek city-state. Today, the remains of the society can be seen in a region of southern Greece called Laconia.Sparta was a thriving city-state for a short-lived time; ranging from 431-404 B.C.E. The society of Sparta was especially prosperous due to their unique hierarchy. The population of Sparta was divided up into 3 segments: full citizens known as Spartiates, Helots (servants/slaves) and Perioeci, people who are neither slaves nor citizens.
Not only did city-states have different governments, they had different cultures too. Athens and Spartans lived very different lives in many ways, such as their geography, government, and education. The Athens lived in central Greece, only four miles from the Aegean Sea. They could just hop on a boat, travel to the outside world and learn new things. Sparta was more isolated, on a plane between the mountains and the sea. They were suspicious of outsiders and their ideas, they grew what they needed and took what they couldn’t grow from their neighbors. They could not get along. Another difference was government. Athens became a democracy in 500 B.C.E. All free men over the age of 18 were considered citizens and a council of 500 men over the
Athens and Sparta were the two major polis in the classical Greek world, both very powerful and influential, but in very different ways. The majority of the hundreds of polis that make up Greece, independently ruled themselves. Greeks would go to Oracles to divine their future or settle disputes. Young Greeks would meet in Olympia for athletic competitions; known as, The Olympic Games. Athens and Sparta both had the Olympic Games and Oracles. They also shared other things; such as, language, culture, and history. Sparta had a population of 140,000 people and Athens had a population of 200,000 people.
In Ancient Greece, Athens is more superior than Sparta because of their government, economic structure, and cultural values. Athens allows people to be a part of government, is friendly to other city-states, and is open for trade. While Sparta has only a few people ruling, goes to war with other city-states, and is isolated from them.
There are many similarities and many more differences between Athens and Sparta. They were both city-states within Greece. Although these cities were both close in ancient Greece they were very different. These city-states ruled very differently and were quite opposite of each other. The differences will become more value-based than the similarities, which had purely to do circumstances, such as time period.
Because of the tranquil times, the civilization’s society had more time to focus on writing, math, astronomy, and artistic fields, as well as trade and metallurgy. Out of all the city-states of Greece, two excelled over all the rest, Sparta and Athens. Even though they were the most advanced and strong civilizations, they were bitter enemies. While Athens focused mainly on the people’s democracy and citizen rights, Sparta were ferocious and enslaved its original inhabitants, making them unable to leave and kept under a close eye to prevent insurgence (History of Greece:The Golden Age of Greece). Additionally, Sparta had strict and trained soldiers that underwent intense physical exercising and instruction.