The Pros And Cons Of Spartan Education

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Rachel Wyatt Mrs.Marin Ancient History 12 December 2014 Spartan Education was Necessary Spare the rod and spoil the child. In ancient Sparta this idea was taken to a new level- spare the rod and lose the country. Sparta was a small city-state located on the Peloponnese in Greece. In the 5th century BCE it had a double problem- invasion from outsiders like the Persians or the Athenians, or rebellion from the inside by a semi-slave population called the helots. To deal with this twin problem, Sparta developed a strict educational training system. A reasonable question is whether the strengths of this system outweighed the weaknesses. After going through the evidence and arguments on both sides, it can be argued that the strengths…show more content…
In a city-state or home where security was the main concern, fitness and toughness were absolutely what education should have been about. In addition to being tough, the Spartan education also taught the people in the society to be resourceful and sly. Senior members of the agoge, who were 18 to 21 years of age were put into a group called the krypteia. These men were sent out into various parts of the country with daggers and food. Their objective was to kill helots (Document C). This clearly shows they were sly because if the other helots knew of their actions then they would have rebelled a long time ago. Lycurgus was founder of formal Spartan education and made the rule. He provided the boys with such moderate amount of food so the boys would know how to carry on with their hunger unsatisfied. Due to the fact that Lycurgus did not provide enough food the boys were allowed to relieve their hunger by stealing their food (Document B). Therefore since the Spartans were constantly worried about invaders and their inside helot problem, teaching the boys to be resourceful if hungry while in battle was a useful skill, and being sly minimized the helot…show more content…
In times of battle, discipline was the glue that held the phalanx together (Background Essay) and the phalanx was a key to Spartan survival. So obviously it is important for the Spartan education to consist of self-discipline and respect. Since the Spartans were always paranoid about being attacked and had such a small population and army, it was important for them to learn about being physically fit, resourceful, sly, respectful, and to be self-disciplined. Spartan boys were taught to be physically fit so they could be strong for battle and to be able to produce a strong and healthy child. It was important for them to be resourceful so they could find food and not starve if one day put in that situation. Self-discipline respect were also necessary to be taught because that also ties into being fit for battle. Although the Spartan educational system is seriously flawed because it discourages reading, foreign travel, and the theater (Document D). The Spartans saw these as distractions and threats to Spartan unity. Those who charge Sparta’s education with being too harsh, need to remember the heroic stand by Spartan warriors at Thermopylae. Self-preservation is this first job of a nation or city-state. Spartan methods may appear extreme but are very significant because even today people are taught to be physically fit, respectful, and
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