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What Are The Similarities Between Spartan And Athenian Culture

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A Comparison of Greek and Spartan Culture
The Mediterranean Sea brought together parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia and facilitated the creation of a diverse range of civilizations with unique cultures. In Europe, one of the most prominent cultures, apart from the Romans, was the Greeks. Greek culture differed greatly from city to city. For example, the Greek cities of Athens and Sparta were vastly different although they were both considered Greek. This was due to the fact that the forms of government adopted by the Athenians and the Spartans differed based on the culture that prevailed throughout the civilization.
Before examining Greek cultures, it is prudent to understand the topography of the civilizations. Greece is located on a mountainous …show more content…

The Athenian culture was characterized by an emphasis “on human beings reaching their full potential and the enrichment of personal life” (p8). This principle established what was known to Athenians as the good citizen. Rather than focusing on the ancient principle of arete or courage in the midst of battle, the Athenians found that “a concern for the good of the community…” was more important (p7). The Athenians also emphasized the Greek principle of the Polis or the community. As a result of the cultural focus on community, Athens adopted a democratic form of government. In Athens, every issue was voted on by the people based on majority rule, known as a direct democracy. Votes took place at the Athenian Assembly known as “the center of Athenian democracy” where all citizens could voice their opinions (p7). While all “citizens” could participate in politics not every resident of Athens could place a vote. Women, slaves, and foreigners were not granted citizenship and therefore could not vote. This meant that over fifty percent of Athens' total population was unable to participate in politics (The Greeks 2013 p7). With that said, Athenian democracy focused on giving its citizens political power by removing or limiting the influence of monarchs and influential families. With the Greek concept of the Polis in mind, an examination of Spartan culture will portray an entirely different

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Even to this day, we still use Athens and Sparta’s societal systems and structures because they were so revolutionary. Athens even introduced the idea of democracy, and Sparta had a strong military culture. Although Athens and Sparta were close together, Athens focused on leadership and education while Sparta focused on the military and war. However, due to their different governments and cultures, each has their strengths and weaknesses. However, because Athens focuses on its future leaders, Athens is the better model for a society.

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Athens vs. Sparta Whether it's government, education, art, or military, Athens and Sparta have always had many similarities as well as differences in ancient Greece. Sparta and Athens did not share the same view and opinions. As a result of these disagreements, the two ancient Greek city-states were rivals. They both had very different methods of teaching, military training, women's rights, and more. Spartans focused most on the training of war, and Athens focused most on knowledge and intelligence.

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 Spartan's government structure was considered to be an oligarchy.  Sparta enrolled all of its men in a life-time servitude to the military.  Athens had a people's court, giving its citizens the right to participate in its legislative process. 

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Based on information provided in Document E all of Athens citizens were eligible to attend The Assembly. Athenians chose their officials and had an executive committee that oversaw the Assembly in contrast to the Roman Senate that passed down through heredity of the oldest Roman families. Athenians had opportunities to speak out and voice their opinion for a better way of life however the Romans did not. In addition, Document C states that in the Roman Republic not all citizens received the same rights or political participation, whereas in Athens all citizens had full rights and political participation. In Rome, citizenship was given out freely but was unfair and in measured amounts.

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In the democratic government only allowed wealthy and well borne men to vote or hold public office. But as time passed this began to change and more and more individuals gained the right to vote. Athenian democracy was called a direct democracy, this meant that only citizens voted and debated on the issues. For an Athenian citizen to be ideal he must be voting with the right intention and making the right decisions for his community as he has the power to do so. Here we have the Athenian concept of Arete.

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Although the two city-states of Greece carried different motives they were both thought of as thinkers who loved beauty and multiple forms of art. Culture is one thing the two city states seemed to differ in greatly. Athens was thought to be a more progressive city-state. It’s known for art, architecture, drama, science advancements, philosophy, as well as literature. Though they were advanced in all of these fields they were behind on the rights of women.

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Sparta vs. Athens To begin with, Athens and Sparta were both famous in antiquity for their legend, cultures and the character of the people. On the one hand, the two poleis share certain obvious affinities, such as language, geographical scope, a common Greek ancestry etc. On the other hand, they were polar opposites in many aspects, from social spheres, political structures, to military might, which I believe there are some hidden depths in these city-states. Hence, let’s look at how did their people obtain the right to participate in public life and make decisions affecting the community, and who held public office first.

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In their democracy, every male was required to participate regardless of his social standing. In the Athenian government, “no one, so long as he has it in him to be of service to the state is kept in political obscurity because of poverty.” This represents the Athenians belief that the people should have a role in politics and not just officials. The Athenians wanted to ensure equality and respect throughout the polis. Like the Athenians, the Spartans supported the idea that wealth should not limit a person.

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Sparta and Athens are both major Greek city states. According to Britannica, “a city state is a political system consisting of an independent city having sovereignty over contiguous territory and serving as a center and leader of political, economic, and cultural life.” They were the largest and most important of all the city-states of ancient Greece. Sparta and Athens have some similarities but these similarities are slightly different. These differences are shown best by their government, opinions on slavery, religion, and their currency.

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Introduction The Athenians and Spartans were rulers in their own right and developed different political systems. Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece, the birthplace of democracy. Athenians were patrons that support, protects, and believed in living and dying as a champion. Their foundation was primarily focused on economic growth. Spartans believed in being resilient and self-disciplined.

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They declared war, they signed treaties, and they chose how to use public funds. These decisions were made in the Athenian Assembly, the center of Athenian democracy and where all citizens could participate. Majority vote was supreme” (Regent, par. 7). The inception of proper political structure was presented as it gave the citizens the power to decide on their fate and to place the laws regardless of its past misgovernance.

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Another factor that makes the Athenian society the best is their

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In Athenian society there was a sort of democracy, the first in recorded history, but political rights and the power to vote was held by a relatively small group. Only free adult males with Athenian parents were eligible. While this also seems like an oligarchy today, it gave voice to a much larger portion of society than any of its contemporaries.(Brand,

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The Greeks displayed their humanistic values through government by they utilizing an effective system of self governing. This system was a direct democracy, defined as “government by the people” or “rule of the majority.” In the Athenian Democracy, the Assembly was the regular

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