Spartan society
Uploaded by CaseyP on Aug 22, 2016
Spartan Society
Student’s Name
Institution
Outline
1 Introduction 3
2 Spartan Society and Social Classes 3
2.1 Upbringing 3
2.2 Social Classes 4
3 Spartan Military 5
3.1 War with Persia 5
3.2 War with Athens 6
4 The Downfall of Spartans 7
5 References 8
1 Introduction
Spartan society refers to a community of warriors that lived during primordial Greece. The society was militaristic and is remembered for its military prowess, specifically after conquering the Athens during the Peloponnesian battle. The Spartan way of life revolved around state loyalty as well as serving in the military. As early as seven years, the boys were enrolled in a thorough military training along with joining a socialization program. The training was referred to as “Agoge”, and the boys were mainly taught about endurance, serving and discipline. The women did not serve in the military; hence, they had more freedom than the men. The society was divided into social classes, which depended on individual’s status. Unfortunately, the Spartans were eventually conquered by Thebes, resulting in the decline of the empire.
2 Spartan Society and Social Classes
2.1 Upbringing
The Spartans brought up their children as a community. The early years of a child’s life were spent with peers. While girls enjoyed freedom, the boys’ lives were not totally free. This is because, from a young age, the boys were taken away from their parent’s care and enrolled into “Agoge” or military training (Garland, 1998). The objective of the training was to ensure that Spartan Society continued to have a strong military. Also, the education the boys received emphasized on high levels of discipline, submission and endurance. Unlike normal education, which concentrates on teaching children how to write and read, Spartans taught their children how to follow orders and how to fight.
The training would continue up to the age of sixteen. The young adults would graduate to become a secret police force for their society. They lived in the wild. The education was finalized once the young adults became twenty years and became liable to take part in military service. The young men were required to spend all their time in the army barracks, as they had not yet attained full citizenship (Garland, 1998). However, at the age of thirty they were awarded full citizenship to become Spartan. At this age, the men could now live with their families, although they were still expected to spend more time with peers (Garland, 1998).
The girls were also enrolled in a training program, which entailed rigorous physical education. They were taught how to...