Why Is Athens Better Than Sparta

Sparta and Athens, with their heavily contrasting city-states, have always been known as relentless rivals in Ancient Greece. They were close on a map, yet far in their means of government and lifestyle. The interests of the Greek people were better served by Sparta’s oligarchy than Athens’ democracy. The Spartan government provided for its citizens better than the Athenian government, the Spartan government protected its people more effectively than the Athenian government, and Spartan women had more freedom than Athenian women.

Spartan society was divided into three main classes: Spartiate, the perioeci, and the helots. Spartiate served in the military and was the only person to have full political and legal rights. The perioeci were foreign people that rested between Spartiate and the helots. The perioeci had a great deal of freedom. …show more content…
Sparta was known as possibly the strongest city-state in all of Greece, and are still one of the most feared military squads in history. Much of Sparta’s focus was on running a disciplined military. They had an excellently trained military with diligent soldiers. In Sparta, only the strongest males and females survived. They left babies to die if they were too weak, the reason being that they only wanted the strongest children. Spartan boys, at the age of seven, were taken from their homes to prepare for the military life ahead. They were trained mercilessly until the age of twenty, and then they joined the military of Sparta. The Spartans civilians may have had less freedom than the Athenians, but they gained respect from the other Greeks and opposing nations for having such a well-run military. During the military time, the Athenian government was more concerned with their citizens than their own well-being. Athens was mainly focused on comfort and culture and did not meet their military needs. Athens was no match for Sparta and their aggressive