A huge issue in today’s society is the gap between the poor and the wealthy. It does not matter if it is in Africa, Great Britain, or the United States of America: this issue is present. One common solution to this problem, some people say, is to make everything equal for everyone: equal education, equal resources, equal money, equal opportunity. While this idea looks good on paper, what most people do not realize is that there was already a society that worked a lot like that: Sparta. This was a community centered around military and pride for their city but everyone was viewed as an equal. What looks like the perfect solution started off really well but after hundreds of years, one bad leader turned the fragile system based on selflessness
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Lycurgus was born into royalty in Sparta and when his father died, his older brother became king and married a queen. She became pregnant but before the baby was born, the king died. This meant that Lycurgus was now king unless the queen gave birth to a boy. The queen, for reasons undetermined, wanted to remind queen and tried to convince Lycurgus to marry her and let her abort the baby. This didn’t set right with Lycurgus’s morals and so he tricked her into keeping the baby, who turned out to be a boy. This act would be an example of selflessness and putting Sparta before one’s own wants which would become the foundation for Sparta’s new government. To escape the former queen’s wrath, Lycurgus traveled around the Mederterainian, learning about other governments. After years had passed, the Spartan people were begging him to come back. Separation between the two kings that were ruling and the common people was huge; there was inequality with wealth; the kings were abusing their powers. When Lycurgus finally came back, no one was opposed to him - not even the kings. He turned a community that was centered around inequality and turned it into an equal, military based community. “First and most significant among Lycurgus’ numerous innovations was the institution of the Elders.” (Lycurgus 5) The Elders was a group of men sixty-five years old or older that had
Lycurgus was born into royalty in Sparta and when his father died, his older brother became king and married a queen. She became pregnant but before the baby was born, the king died. This meant that Lycurgus was now king unless the queen gave birth to a boy. The queen, for reasons undetermined, wanted to remind queen and tried to convince Lycurgus to marry her and let her abort the baby. This didn’t set right with Lycurgus’s morals and so he tricked her into keeping the baby, who turned out to be a boy. This act would be an example of selflessness and putting Sparta before one’s own wants which would become the foundation for Sparta’s new government. To escape the former queen’s wrath, Lycurgus traveled around the Mederterainian, learning about other governments. After years had passed, the Spartan people were begging him to come back. Separation between the two kings that were ruling and the common people was huge; there was inequality with wealth; the kings were abusing their powers. When Lycurgus finally came back, no one was opposed to him - not even the kings. He turned a community that was centered around inequality and turned it into an equal, military based community. “First and most significant among Lycurgus’ numerous innovations was the institution of the Elders.” (Lycurgus 5) The Elders was a group of men sixty-five years old or older that had