The two important poleis in Ancient Greek were Athens and Sparta. The two were political opposites of each other - the former with a democratic government and the latter with oligarchy. In this paper, the similarities and differences of Athens and Sparta will be discussed along with who held public office, how they were selected, and how people participated in public life and decision making.
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UNIT 1 ASSIGNMENT - ATHENS AND SPARTA
Unit 1 Assignment - Athens and Sparta in Ancient Greek
1. Introduction
The ancient Greek world was made up of hundreds of city states called poleis , or polis in singular form; these poleis were the typical community structure at the time (Cartwright,
2013). Many of the poleis were not very large in size. However, …show more content…
Both societies did not consider women, foreigners, and slaves to be citizens. Hence only native-born men could have political rights. Also, both the Athenian and Spartan government structures had a people’s assembly which was made of free male citizens.
6. Differences Between Athens and Sparta Governments
As it was discussed earlier in above sections, Athens had a form of democratic government. In contrast, the Spartan government differed from Athenian government and most of the other government structures of Greek poleis. Sparta had a unique dual kingship that came from two separate royal families named Agiads and Eurypontids (Brand, n.d., p. 9).
The kings however were often subject to the will of the elder council and their five magistrates, and therefore were not true monarchs. Additionally, unlike in Sparta where all slaves were public properties, most slaves in Athens were private properties (Brand, n.d., p.
29). Skilled slaves in Athens were also able to buy their freedom and move out of the slave class. 7. Conclusion
There were both similarities and differences between Athens and Sparta society. The most apparent difference would be the existence or absence of democracy. That being said,
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UNIT 1 ASSIGNMENT - ATHENS AND
3
UNIT 1 ASSIGNMENT - ATHENS AND SPARTA
Unit 1 Assignment - Athens and Sparta in Ancient Greek
1. Introduction
The ancient Greek world was made up of hundreds of city states called poleis , or polis in singular form; these poleis were the typical community structure at the time (Cartwright,
2013). Many of the poleis were not very large in size. However, …show more content…
Both societies did not consider women, foreigners, and slaves to be citizens. Hence only native-born men could have political rights. Also, both the Athenian and Spartan government structures had a people’s assembly which was made of free male citizens.
6. Differences Between Athens and Sparta Governments
As it was discussed earlier in above sections, Athens had a form of democratic government. In contrast, the Spartan government differed from Athenian government and most of the other government structures of Greek poleis. Sparta had a unique dual kingship that came from two separate royal families named Agiads and Eurypontids (Brand, n.d., p. 9).
The kings however were often subject to the will of the elder council and their five magistrates, and therefore were not true monarchs. Additionally, unlike in Sparta where all slaves were public properties, most slaves in Athens were private properties (Brand, n.d., p.
29). Skilled slaves in Athens were also able to buy their freedom and move out of the slave class. 7. Conclusion
There were both similarities and differences between Athens and Sparta society. The most apparent difference would be the existence or absence of democracy. That being said,
7
UNIT 1 ASSIGNMENT - ATHENS AND