Spartan Political and Social System Essay - 1390 Words

Spartan Political and Social Systems Sparta was, above all, a military state, and emphasis on military fitness began at birth, imprinted through society and the political system. The education of the Spartan male children prove that the military and war was constantly a huge part of Spartan society, and the laws and systems that Sparta was governed by, only enforced the militaristic attitude into the society of Sparta. That the Spartans needed to be ready for war is proved by the discord between the Spartiate and the helots, who outnumbered and under ranked the Spartans. From birth Spartan children were expected to be physically strong and when male children were ten days old they were examined by a council of elders to see if the†¦show more content†¦When the children turned twelve they started a harsher training, teaching them the hardships they would have to suffer in a time of war. They trained nude, slept on beds of rushes, given a minimal amount of food and expected to fend for themselves. There were also contests to see who could take the most severe flogging. For the most part of these years the boys were arranged into groups, and were sent off into the countryside with nothing, and were expected to survive on wits and cunning. It was assumed that they would steal their food, yet anyone caught stealing was severely punished. The next stage in turning a Spartan male into a Spartiate soldier was for them to become enrolled as an eiren, or a prefect. Their job was to oversee the younger boys, as had been done for them. They were encouraged to use violence against the younger boys to toughen them up. The older boys were now expected to attempt to get into a syssition, however if they failed to get into the syssition they applied for they would lose their citizenship and become an outcast. The Spartans at this point were able to go to war and get married, however they were not allowed to leave the barracks. Once a Spartan reached the age of thirty,Show MoreRelatedAncient Greek And Modern Standards Essay1706 Words   |  7 Pageswon this Crown† These proud words were spoken by Cynisca, a noble Spartan women belongings to one of the two Spartan ruling families. What makes this quote so extraordinary by both Ancient Greek and modern standards is that Cynisca’s achievement in tethrippon , at the Olympics rebelled against popular Ancient Greek ideology of women’s role in society. 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