SPARTA & ATHENS

GREEK ACHIEVEMENTS

SPARTA Sparta was dominated by the military Military power was a way to best offer

protection to the city-state Daily life revolved around the concepts

of the military

SPARTA - MALES Every baby boy was inspected at birth; if

unhealthy he was taken outside the city and left to die

Healthy boys were trained from a young age to be soldiers Physically trained – jumped, swam, threw javelins Mentally/Emotionally trained – not given shoes or

heavy clothes, not given a lot of food, allowed to steal to teach them to make their own way, but if caught they were whipped

Courage & strength were more important than safety Believed in discipline & obedience From ages 20 to 30 they lived in barracks, away from

family They stayed in the army until they were 60

SPARTA - FEMALESBecause men were often away from the

home, the women were given more rights than typical women of their time Some women could own land Did NOT spin cloth or weave – they left such

work to the slaves Also received physical training

Run, jump, wrestle, throw javelinsBelieved that physical strength would help

them bear healthy children

SPARTA - GOVERNMENTTwo kings who jointly led the armyElected officials held more power than the

kings because they ran the daily activities of Spartan life

System was set up to control the helots, or slaves, to prevent rebellions

ATHENS Main rival of Sparta Had military strength, but valued

education

ATHENS - MALES Physically trained like Spartan boys (similar) However, they only had to be in the army for

two years from 18 to 20 years old & older men only had to serve in times of war (different)

Learned to read, write, count, sing, play music Studied history and literature Rich families had their sons tutored in

philosophy, geometry, & astronomy Taught how to speak in public Boys from poor families received less

education, but could still read and write; they usually became farmers or craftspeople

ATHENS - FEMALESGirls received NO educationLearned household tasks like weaving and

sewingWomen had few rights

Could not serve in the government (assemblies, voting, or juries)

Could not leave their homes except for special occasions

Could not buy anything or own property Could not disobey their husbands or fathers

PELOPONNESIAN WAR Many city-states had formed alliances

after they worked together during the Persian Wars

Athens used their powerful army and control of the sea to “bully” the other city-states

Sparta, with their own alliances with city-states, declared war on Athens to stop their ongoing growth and power

The Peloponnesian War was a war between Athens and Sparta that threatened to tear Greece apart For 10 years the soldiers battled with no side

ever really winning Finally agreed to a truce A few years later, Athens tried to overtake the

island of Sicily, but lost with the help of Spartan allies

Sparta took this advantage and went to war again with Athens, cutting off their food supply

Athens surrendered because they were starving

Sparta became the most powerful city-state until, AGAIN, other city-states started to fight for more control

War continued among the city-states and weakened the country of Greece

GREEK ACHIEVEMENTS The Arts

Still admired today & hang in museums around the world

Carved statues out of marble and stone; studied the body carefully and wanted to depict people as beautiful and in-motion

Paintings show realism and detail; show detailed scenes from myths or competitions, most popular colors are black and red

Architecture still exists today They took great care in the design of their buildings Built great temples with huge columns

One of the greatest temples was the Parthenon, a temple to Athena

Created drama, or plays, to honor the gods during religious ceremonies Tragedies – described hardships faced by Greek

heroes Comedies – made fun of people and ideas

First people to write about history & the lessons people could learn from the past

Philosophy Philosopher – believed in the power of the

human mind to think, explain, and understand life

Moved away from mythology explaining events and tried to gain understanding from a new perspective

Socrates Believed that people should NEVER stop looking

for knowledge Encouraged people to learn by asking questions People believed him to be questioning the gods

authority, so he was sentenced to death; drank poison

Plato Student of Socrates Created a school for people to discuss ideas Wrote The Republic about his ideal (perfect)

society where there was justice and everyone was treated fairly

Aristotle Student of Plato Believed in living in moderation and balance Believed in reason, or clear and ordered thinking

– Think about your actions & how it will affect others

Also believed in logic – using the facts that you have to figure out new facts

SCIENCE Euclid – studied math & geometry, many of his work

is still used in textbooks and classrooms today Another mathematician accurately calculated the

size of the Earth Studied human body to treat diseases Hippocrates – had a set idea of how doctors and

medical professionals should behave; today we have the Hippocratic Oath

Archimedes – invented a way to irrigate crops using a water screw, which brings water from lower fields to the upper fields

Other inventions: puppets, coin-operated machines, & mechanical toys