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Culture Comparison: Athens & Sparta
Athens
Athens is a city along the eastern coast of Greece, by the region known as Attica. The soil in Athens was very
poor, the ground was hilly, and had little rain fall. This made farming and growing enough food very difficult,
and was be a key weakness to the city.
Athens is an old city, having been founded by the
Mycenaeans (Earlier group of Greeks) around
1200 BC. The Athenians believed that their
people are related to the Greek Hero Theseus,
who slew the Minotaur (scary human-like animal
with horns), and freed the Athenians from the
Minoans, another group of Greeks.
Athens
Athens location along the coast has made it a key center for both trading and culture (art, architecture, literature,
and education). The best schools in all of Greece could be found in Athens. They became famous for their
unique style of pottery that showed the stories of the legends about the great Greek heroes. These pots have
been found all over the Mediterranean Sea. The Athenians worshipped the goddess Athena as their Patron
(protector) Goddess, whom they worshipped for her wisdom and craftsmanship. The people of Athens built a
massive temple in her honor called the Parthenon. It was in the center of their city and housed a 40 foot bronze
statue of Athena. The people of Athens also held a huge art and theatre festival held each year in her honor.
Athens was easy to defend. In the center of the city was the Acropolis. This is a raised area that they used as a
fortress. On the Acropolis, they built important military structures,
as well as religious buildings like the Parthenon. The cities
Parthenon
positioned along the sea also helped them develop a strong navy.
All of these things made Athens a difficult place to invade.
Athens had the world’s only functioning Direct Democracy. A
direct democracy meant all citizens voted on each issue. People
had the money and time to focus on politics because of the large
slave system and the money coming in from trading. This was
Acropolis
especially true for the aristocrats (upper class people), who held the
top positions within the government. To be a citizen, both parents had to be citizens of Athens. This would give
a person protection under the law. It also allowed them to: get a job, own land, participate in festivals/religious
events, attend social gatherings, and fight in the military. As a male citizen, your life focused around the
question: “What are you doing for the glory of Athens?” If you were not taking part in social activities and in
the government, you were treated like a social outcast.
Life was very different for Athenian women. The purpose of a woman’s life was to give birth to male children
and pass on citizenship. A girl would stay in her father’s house until she hit puberty (age
13-18). At this point her father would find her a husband, paying him a dowry (money or
animals) to marry her. The husband was typically an “established”
member of society, typically 28-35 years old. If a woman did not have
any brothers, she would be married off to an uncle or cousin, so her
father’s land would stay in the family. Once she was married, a woman
could not leave her husband’s house, unless escorted by her husband.
She was only allowed out of the house for certain religious festivals. The
rest of her time was spent attending to the household chores,
spinning/weaving clothes, etc. Girl babies were often exposed of (left
outside to die), as they were considered a burden to the family. If a
woman did not produce a son, the husband could divorce her.
Culture Comparison: Athens & Sparta
Gather information on the following topics for Athens & Sparta. Circle the things they have in common.
Athens
Sparta
Ancient Past & City Setup
Society/Culture/Lifestyle
Government & Citizenship
Women
Letter from a Greek Assignment: You will write a letter as if you grew up in Sparta or Athens. Explain
what life is like in your culture. You must explain your culture’s;
-Role for women
-Government style -Economy
-Education system
-Day to day life
-Physical features and their impact
Culture Comparison: Athens & Sparta
Sparta
Sparta is a city along the South-West portion of Greece, on the Peloponnese Peninsula. It is a city surrounded
by mountains, which serve as a natural defense. The Spartans also conquered large areas around their city,
which had fertile farm land. They are by far the most powerful state on the peninsula.
Legend tells of the Spartans being descendants of the Dorians, who came to Greece
around 1000 BC and defeated the Mycenaeans (the previous Greek power). The
Spartans also believed themselves to be of the same blood line as the great Greek hero
Hercules. This added to the mystic of the Spartan
warriors.
Sparta
The Spartans government was an oligarchy. In an
oligarchy a small group of people with the same ideas
have power. Oligarchy’s can have many forms but is essentially a small group
of people with the same ideas having complete power. Sparta’s version had
two kings along with a council. To be on the council, you had to be citizen
who was retired from the military. To be a citizen in Sparta, a family had to
own enough land to contribute food to feed the military. Everyone had to
agree to uphold their constitution, which were the rules that governed the land.
The Spartans were a military society. Everything centered on the safety and security of Sparta. They did not
spend time on things like education, art, architecture or literature. They cared about preparing to fight and die
for the glory of Sparta. The greatest honor a Spartan could earn was dying in battle. The greatest humiliation
was to return from a defeat alive. Some Spartans even committed suicide instead of returning home after a
defeat. Sparta’s patron (protector) goddess was Athena, whom they worshipped for her military strategy.
The warrior mindset was taught to boys from their youth. When a child was born, only the strong were allowed
to live. If the child was seen as “weak,” they would be left outside to die. When a boy was seven years old, he
was removed from his family and put into military training camp. He was educated through violence. If he
showed failure or weakness, he was put to death. Once a boy made it to 20 years old, he would join a a squad of
soldiers. This would be his family for the next forty years. They would eat together, sleep together, fight
together, and die together. There were no distinctions of class or wealth meaning everyone was equal. A group
of Spartan warriors, with their long hair, bronze chest plate, helmet, and red cape were a fearsome sight.
The only “weakness” to Spartan military was their lack of a navy. Their whole military scheme centered on land
warfare. This causes a problem because you cannot move men as quickly, nor can you block your enemy from
quickly moving men and supplies.
While the men focused their whole lives on the military, the women were left to tend to the
home. The hard work was done by the enormous number of slaves, called Helots. Since
there were more slaves than there were Spartans, there was a constant fear of a Helot
rebellion. The women were given the freedom to leave
the house, and run things as they saw fit.
The chief role of Spartan women was to give birth to
male Spartan warriors. They even earned a special title
and honor if they had three or more male children.
Spartans, though, still valued female children, as
they could grow up to birth more Spartan warriors.
When you are a warrior society, you can never have
enough warriors.
Culture Comparison: Athens & Sparta
Gather information on the following topics for Athens & Sparta. Circle the things they have in common.
Athens
Sparta
Ancient Past & City Setup
Society/Culture/Lifestyle
Government & Citizenship
Women
Letter from a Greek Assignment: You will write a letter as if you grew up in Sparta or Athens. Explain
what life is like in your culture. You must explain your culture’s;
-Role for women
-Government style -Economy
-Education system
-Day to day life
-Physical features and their impact