Spartan Society Essay

Hellenic culture in the Spartan community was that of a humble elite. True Spartan culture is well captured in Xenophon’s work, Spartan Society, as he wrote of how this elitist society viewed not only themselves, but the other countries around them. This work shines light into the three-part worldview of the ancient, Hellenic Spartans of: humanism, idealism, and rationalism. As Xenophon begins to write over the whole of the Spartan society it can be seen how the Spartans lived out the worldview of this Hellenistic society. This living out of the worldview recorded in Xenophon’s, Spartan Society, illustrates their worldview through the noting of Lycurgus’ accomplishments and the contrast of the “other.” Some preliminary study of the authorship,

Understanding these three concepts will allow an authentic reading of Spartan Society. Humanism first and foremost was concerned with mankind as a group and the accomplishments of man (Messner “Early Greece”). This understanding of humanity is clearly seen in Xenophon’s Spartan Society when the accomplishments of Lycurgus are heavily emphasized. Next, idealism is not interested in the world as it is currently, but as it should be (Messner Early “Greece”). This idealization of what the world should be becomes the standard of the culture and begins to influence different aspects of the life of an ancient Spartan. This idealistic view of society is best illustrated in the focus of the comparison of the Spartan society versus the other societies. Finally, rationalism as the means to approaching knowledge completes the worldview of the ancient Spartan community. Rationalism is a way of approaching knowledge that finds the true source of knowledge though the human mind and thought (Messner, “Early Greece”). This rationalistic approach of understanding can be seen in the way that the military formations operated and were composed as illustrated in Spartan Society. These three concepts come together in Xenophon’s Spartan