Why Athens Is Better Than Sparta

Athens and Sparta are individually a single unit, but they have differences that set them apart. Athens has numerous social classes in it’s government, they are known for their strong navy, they have democratic values, and Athens has a bigger population than Sparta. Sparta only has three social classes, they are known for their strong army, which consists of the best and most feared fighters on land, and they have militaristic values.There is a debate on which polis is superior, Athens or Sparta. Athens and Sparta are both well-developed societies, however, Sparta stands out as the superior polis because Spartan women have more rights, education was distributed equally among boys and girls in Sparta, and Sparta had a strong and united culture.

The young boys of Sparta were taken from their homes at age seven and were trained for warfare. The boys were only given a cloak (no shoes or other clothes) and not enough food to survive, as they are expected to steal so that they can learn survival skills. The boys are educated in choral dance, reading and writing, but athletics and military training were emphasized. Athenian boys were tutored to prepare in the culture and politics of the city and were expected to become well-rounded individuals. In an Athenian school, education and literacy were very important, they would teach reading, writing and mathematics, music, poetry, sports and gymnastics. The length of age for schooling in Athenian polis varied on the birth and wealth of the family. Normally for a rich family schooling lasted from age five to age eighteen and the schooling for a regular citizen would last from age five to age fourteen. Sometimes their schooling went until their mid-twenties where they would study philosophy, ethics and rhetoric. Athenian male citizens entered a military training camp for two years until they turned twenty. Foreign Metric slaves were not expected to attain anything but a basic education in Greece, but were not excluded from it either. Athenian girls received little formal education which included spinning, weaving, and other domestic arts. Spartan girls were educated at the age of seven, like the boys, in gymnastics, reading and writing, athletics, and survival skills, they could also participate in