Sparta vs. Athens Blog Entry #5

1. I would rather live in Sparta if i was a young teenage girl of the citizen class because though women still had few rights, they were given more Independence than any other place in Greece. This, along with that in Sparta children were taught to respect elderly, woman, and warriors.In Sparta woman were educated in reading, writing and could play sports. Citizen women were free to move around and enjoy freedom, while in Athens women were kept at home, considered the property of their husbands. These things prove that as a woman I could be more respected and earn more rights then I would in Athens

2. I would rather live in Sparta if I was a slave. In Athens slaves had no rights and an owner could kill the slave. In Sparta Helots which were the equivalents of slaves but they got to use land (not own it) and all they had to do was give half of their produce to the Spartiate citizens who owned the actual land. I would much rather this than to be murdered one day if my owner is in a bad mood and decides to take it out on me.

3. If I was a boy of the citizen class I would rather live in Athens. In Sparta you could either be a Military professional and own land, a Helots and be the equivalent of slave, or a woman with few rights. In Athens freemen were all male citizens and in the middle rank small farmers. I would choose to be a small farmer over being a Helot any day. I would get more rights and not be treated as a slave.

4. If I was a young soldier I would rather live in Sparta. They considered Military professionals to be their highest social ranking earning a lot of respect from the people. And Sparta has a strong army with the best and most feared fighters on land, while Athens is more specialized in the Navy. Being a soldier in Sparta would give me the skills of warfare as well because at age seven all boys are taken from their parents to begin training in the art of warfare. I would much rather be a soldier in Sparta, because they give more respect to the position and that I would be more prepared in battle.

5. If I was a wealthy person of the citizen class, I would much rather live In Athens. While in Sparta the highest social ranking was Military professionals, in Athens it was an aristocrat who could own large estates and had voting rights. If I was wealthy and was going to pick a place to live out of the two it would definitely be Athens because I could use my wealth more to my advantage and use more of it for pleasure based purchases.

6. While both Athens and Sparta have their negative and positive aspects to them I would have to say that I would rather live in Sparta. The highly trained and fearful military system would make me feel safe and secure with my city-state while Athens marine system isn't quite as impressive. As a woman if I would want to leave the house in Athens it would only be if I was a prostitute which I'm not a big supporter of. But in Sparta I could get an education become physically healthy, and even own and control property. I wouldn't be able to do any of those things if I lived in Athens.