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Differences in athens and sparta governmental structure
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Ancient Greece city-states, Athens and Sparta, were quite different from one another. They both had a different government, education, and female rights, to top it all off they also loathed one another. Athens and Sparta were both city-states in Greece. They were constantly conflicted with one another. Sparta was located in the southern part of Greece and was cut off from most of Greece by the Gulf of Corinth. Athens was located on a rocky hill in eastern Greece and is north of Sparta. Though, the two were close in geographic ways, they were not close in relationships or customs. The two city-states had different governments from each other. Sparta had an oligarchy government, where two kings are in command of armies. They also had a council that acted like judges and proposed laws. Athens had the world’s first
In Athens, women and girls were kept at home and were not allowed to participate in sports or politics. They were responsible for all the household chores and taking care of the children. In Sparta, however, women were free to move around and enjoyed a great deal of freedom. Domestic duties were left to the lower classes, such as servants. Women is Sparta could even purchase and tend to their own land. The rights of women were definitely better than in Athens, which is quite ironic because Athens’ patron is the goddess Athena herself.
Some people may think that they are quite similar, Athens and Sparta. They both have a council like element in their government, but it is different. Athens’ assembly is consisted of five hundred members that are all chosen randomly. Whereas Sparta’s Council, only had twenty-eight men, that had to be older than sixty, and are elected for life. Their social ranking are some what similar because they have three different rankings, but the Spartan’s lowest class, the Helots, are treated better than the Athen’s slaves. The two city-states are very
The governments of these two city-states were not alike in many ways. “It is true that our government is called a democracy, because its administration is in the hands, not of the few, but of the many,” (Document 3). Athens’ government was what we would consider today a direct democracy. This means that their government was run by the people, or in other words “the many”, rather than a couple government officials, or “the few”. Although Athens was running their city as a government by the people, Sparta had a different form of government. “it is made up of oligarchy, monarchy, and democracy,
Ancient Greece today is most known for the culture: the gods, the dramas, how people lived. What most people do not realize is that there were hundreds, maybe even thousands, of different civilizations spread throughout Greece that all had different forms of government. The three main ones were Athens, Sparta, and Miletus. Each was very different from the other. The most powerful out of all three was Sparta: a military based society. The Spartan government had a strong foundation that was all torn down by one bad leader.
Spartan women were allowed to own and control land. “Yet it does seem to be the case that Spartan daughters received as dowries one-half the amount of their parents’ property that their brothers received as inheritance.” (Pomeroy, Sarah B., Stanley M. Burstein, Walter Donlan, and Jennifer Tolbert Roberts. "Becoming a Spartan Woman." Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. New York: Oxford UP, 1999. 143. Print) Whereas Athenian women only received one-sixth the amount that their brothers inherited. Spartan women inherited three times as more than their Athenian sisters. Spartan women were also allowed and even encouraged to be educated, whereas the education of Athenian girls was almost nonexistent. In Athens the majority of girls “… received merely a basic training in how to run the household, generally from their mothers. Girls may even have been discouraged from becoming literate in order to keep them “unspoiled.”( Garland, Robert. "The People." Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1998. 103. Print.) Whereas in Sparta the girls were educated at the state’s expense. “Specific lines of development were prescribed for Spartan girls as much as they were for boys. The educational system for girls was also organized according to age classes. (Pomeroy, Sarah B., Stanley M. Burstein, Walter Donlan, and Jennifer Tolbert Roberts. "Becoming a Spartan Woman." Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. New York: Oxford UP, 1999. 141. Print) Spartan women were also allowed more freedoms in the way that they dressed than their Athenian counterparts. “In earlier times Athenian women wore the peplos, a long heavy woolen garment which revealed little of the figure beneath. In the middle of the sixth century B.C., the peplos was replaced by a lighter and finer garment made of linen called
One of the most important difference between the two city-states is the type of government they used. Athens was democratic and allowed the citizens to be a part of the law decisions. While, Sparta was an Oligarchy and ruled by two kings. The government was highly exclusive and only open to higher social standings. Athens lifestyle was modern and free, with an open outlook on life. The young men were not forced to join the army, unlike the Spartan boys who had no choice but to join the army. They concentrated solely on military strength and did not venture to the outside world. Another key difference is, how the woman are treated among the city-states. In Athens the woman had very little freedom, they depended on their husbands and could not own any land. But, Spartan women were stronger and could forge relationships with any man they pleased. They did not have to do any chores while the Athenian woman partook in weaving and cooking
Athens and Sparta were all very big, successful city-states in the ancient world that conquered many lands and won many battles. Ancient Athens and Ancient Sparta seem similar they have very different functioning societies. Athens was known for its impressive art and culture while Sparta was a very war-like city-state and their society was completely based on having a great military. The thing they had in common was that social status and the jobs that each rank of society had was very important. The social status was crucial to Sparta and Athens because, without it, both Greek city-states would not be able to function.
This article is credible and reliable; it offers two sets of information for the reader. It is also suitable for any age group. This site is helpful for those wanting to compare Athens and Sparta or simply read about one or the other.
Women in Sparta were more dominant in society than their Athenian sisters. Spartan women were given a good education, they were taught how to read and write, and were good at arts and athletics. Spartan women are expected to be smart enough to control their property. Spartan women had different freedoms and advantages than other Greek women; they had to be physically, emotionally, and intellectually strong. Spartan women are notoriously known for their razor-sharp wit and outspoken nature.
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.
Both Sparta and Athens were Greek city-states. Sparta was a strict military ruled city-state where the people established themselves as a military power early. However Athens was more of a political city-state that was more involved with their economical stature than their military forces. Still changes from the Persian wars would change the powers of the city-state and somewhat unite them.
Athens and Sparta were both city-states in Classical Greece. While Athens embraced democracy, Sparta was a dictatorial fierce warrior state. Sparta was a militaristic community, Athens was a freethinking, and commerce minded city-state. Modern societies have modeled their government organizational structure and military discipline practices from lessons learned of these ancient city-states. There is much is to be praised regarding Classical Greece for their courage, their progressive thinking and the birth of democracy. However, I think it is important to remember that in both cases, Athens and Sparta were able to sustain their lifestyle on the backs of countless slaves, non-citizens and women and that there is a darker and less romantic side to the past.
There isn’t enough literature from this time period from the lower and middle classes of society, and the view of women we have comes from writings of the upper class males. As much of an enigma that the women of Athens were, it is clear that “women were for the most part legal nonentities,” (O’Neal 117) that were denied any association and participation in the intellectual life of their city. The women were not involved in getting an education, and never learned to read or write. O’Neal writes, “The principal spokesmen of fifth century Athens, Pericles and Thucydides, disdained Athenian women.” (O’Neal 117) Based on their writing, and on surmountable evidence, it can be assumed that women had only two roles in Athens - a wife, or a mother. A girl was ideally married at 14 or 15 years of age, and there was necessity that the bride was a virgin, otherwise she was shamed and sold into
Athens was a much more superior polis compared to Sparta because the Athenians invented new ideas and creations that supported the people, such as democracy, the Athenians led the Delian League, and Sparta created the Peloponnesian League after the Athenians created their alliance, and the Athenians changed the ways of their government many times to suit the people, and the Spartans did not.
Women in the ancient world had few rights, they differed from country to country or, in the case of the women of Athens and Sparta, from city-state to the city-state. The women of the city-states of Athens and Sparta had profound differences in their roles in the political and the daily lives of their families and their cities. When it came to the difference in levels of power and the rights of women, Sparta was a leader in its time. At the same time, their rights as citizens were almost the same. While they did not take an active part in politics, they had opinions and ideas like women all over the world. Their thoughts, deeds, and opinions rarely recorded or if they were, the male historians or philosophers of the time recorded them. What were roles did the women in ancient Athens and Sparta? Were they citizens, did they have personal freedoms? On the other hand, did they in a time when the beginnings of democracy were happening were they less than a second-class citizen? The misogyny and patriarchal societies continued throughout the ancient and classical periods only beginning to change in the Hellenistic era.
Each had their own version of political councils that were give specific power and tasks that they were to oversee and uphold. Equally, both city-states defined citizens as being only males who were born from descendants of either Athenian or Spartan born parents. Although very similar in structure, Athens and Sparta had their political differences. The main difference being Sparta’s focus being on war and employing a two king system to oversee the army as well as policy at the same time. Today this could be similar to the president and vice-president dynamic. Athens’ structure was much more complex than that of Sparta which gave more freedom to the people; this was partly due to breaking down regions into 10 separate states that formed the larger entire state of Athens. Below are some of the similarities in there government
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.