Comparison Women Ancinet Athens and Sparta

1419 Words6 Pages
ESSAY TOPIC The lives of women in Ancient Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta were vastly different. Generally, the Classical time period brought about a steep decline in women’s positions in society. When comparing the city-states, Athens was more unfavourable to women’s lives. Greek women living in the city-state of Athens were dominated by men and as a consequence were powerless. In Athens, women did not wield the same political and influential power as a man. Women were not treated the same as boys when they turned 18, and were devoid of the ‘coming of age’ period, never able to truly evolve as a citizen. It was not uncommon for a father to sell his daughter as a slave if the household was in economic turmoil. The birth of a boy was far more celebrated than the birth of a girl, which was often considered an event with negative connotations attached, as a dowry would need to be paid in the future. Not every household was financially equipped to pay such a fee, and therefore it would be more strategic for a family to kill their own girl child as a matter of economic convenience. ------------------------------------------------- In contrast, the city state of Sparta was unique as it provided more rights, power and autonomy for women than Athens. [1] The main focus of Spartan society was to produce a strong male military force to conquer the neighbouring territory of Messenia. This focus resulted in changing the roles of Greek women from subservience to autonomy. The need to train and send men to war required women to remain at home managing and running the economy while the men were in battle, and producing more male children to become soldiers. This quest enabled women to flourish without the dominance of men. Aristotle, the Athenian philosopher was not supportive of the governance of Sparta, and called it a 'gynocracy' - a state ruled by women. His
Open Document