Spartan Women Essay

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Unlike their Athenian counterparts, Spartan women certainly were not marginalised. Everyone in Spartan society was expected to support the military ethos on which the society was based. Women were forbidden to spin or weave as such tasks were seen as tasks fit only for slaves. They were also excluded from holding public office and did not have the right to vote. Though they did not participate in government, the women did enjoy considerable freedom, could accumulate property and exercise considerable power. The women of Sparta were given freedom, power, respect and status that were unheard of in other Greek city-states. The main function of Spartan women was to be wives and mothers of citizens. Women knew their central goal was to “continue Sparta, through childbirth”. Xenophon wrote, “Lycurgus thought that for free women the most important job was to bear children”. Marriage was unusual in Sparta; it was common for a married couple to keep their marriage a secret until the birth of their child. Women married around the age of 18, or when according to Plutarch, they were “ripe for it” – mentally and physically ready for motherhood. Spartan women naturally had very strong maternal instincts and were sought after in Athens as nannies. The role of rearing children was paramount and their relationship with their sons was not of the norm. Spartan mothers freely gave their sons up, at the age of seven, to the agoge, for formal military training. They did this time and time again, showing the strong emphasis that women had in continuing the military strength of Sparta. On leaving for war a Spartan son would be farewelled by his mother, who would hand him his shield and say “either with this or, on this” implying that she gave birth to him to be a hero, and the only two ways for heroes to return are victorious or dead in battle. Women were vital in keeping the high code

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