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... our the Athenians did not stress physical prowess as much as the Spartans, they did not disregard it all together. Young children were trained at the palestrae, gyms for children, by paidotribes, in activities such as running, jumping, wrestling, and swimming. Plato believed that children are trained physically so that they may not be compelled through bodily weakness to play the coward in war or on any other occasion (Protagoras 326. C). However, it seems that the training the children received would be much more useful in athletic competitions held at religious festivals than in actual combat.
When comparing the hardships the young Athenians went through to that of the Spartans, they are almost nonexistent. While the Spartans were denied food and comfort, the young Athenians still lived at home and went to school. They were never forced to endure any physical pain that would make them stronger for battle. However, the Athenians were far more educated by todays standards in terms of reading and writing than their counterparts, thus highlighting the goal of their educational process; creating an educated citizen that could actively participate in government. At the age of eleven, the next level of a Spartan education began. The main portion of this time period in a boys life was highlighted by harsh living conditions in which he strengthened himself for battle.
To start, the boy no longer wore a tunic. In its place was a single cloak that he was forced to wear for the entire year. Next, all the boys slept in dormitories together on hard pallet beds in hopes of creating a strong sense of unity among the boys. To fight in the hoplite-phalanx, one must trust and have faith in his neighbor.
Therefore, by living among the men that one will fight and die with, strong bonds of loyalty are formed that will carry over into battle. Xenophon can best describe the reason for this stern treatment of the young men. When a boy ceases to be a child, and begins to be a lad, others release him from his moral tutor and his schoolmaster: he is no longer under a ruler and is allowed to go his own way. Here again, Lycurgus introduced a wholly different system. For he observed that at this time of life self-will makes strong root in a boys mind, a tendency to insolence manifests itself, and a keen appetite for pleasure in a different form takes possession of him. At this stage, therefore, he imposed a ceaseless round of work, and contrived a constant round of occupation.
The Spartans believed that a boy of this age could not do as he pleased because it would not benefit the state. Therefore, the lives of the boys were controlled for them so they would not stray from the rigid discipline that would turn them into homolog, or equals. One more element of the maturing process that demanded modesty from the boys occurred in a common everyday activity, walking. While the boys were walking, they were expected to, keep their hands under their cloaks, to walk in silence, not to look about them, but to fix their eyes on the ground. (xenophon). However, not all young men were able to survive under the extreme pressures that the educational system brought them. In a society that only offered respect and glory from martial valor, those who were not able to finish the training, lived a life of shame.
After being identified as cowards, they received the nickname of trembler's, and lost many societal privileges. For example, a trembler could not hold public office, and it was not likely that any women would be given to them in marriage or that anyone would marry their sisters. (Pomeroy -Page 141). Secondary education for an Athenian boy usually lasted from the ages of fourteen to eighteen and only if the boys family was wealthy enough for him to not be working. The curriculum consisted of more advanced literature, language, and mathematics, though the individual courses of study depended on the interests of their parents. To obtain deeper thought, Plato believed that interpreting the meaning of poetry could increase the intellectuality of the boys rather than just memorizing line after line. (Protagoras 325 - 326). Another subject that was taught, drawing, received praise from Aristotle because it is supposed to be useful in enabling us to judge the work of craftsmen better. (Politics VIII. 3).
As one can see, the education of an Athenian was far less demanding and physically stressful than that of a Spartan. The focus of this time period in a young mans life revolved around teaching him certain social skills, such as language and appraising craftsmanship, rather than teaching him how to survive. In comparison with a Spartan boy, who was not allowed to look up, nonetheless talk, while walking, the skills an Athenian knew were obviously for different purposes. The above taught a Spartan to be a warrior. His body was hardened and conditioned for battle at a very early age, yet he lacked what modern society would call an education.
On the other hand, a well-off Athenian was in the process of becoming a thoughtful, intellectual leader who would eventually participate in government. Observably, the education provided emphasizes exactly what each society represents. For Sparta, war was the way of life. Yet for Athens, civic duty was the responsibility of each citizen. As we will see, in the next period of the young mans education, he will be initiated into society to serve the purpose that is required of every male.
Between the ages of fourteen to twenty, the young Spartans officially became men. New responsibilities, such as military training, participation in the krypteia, and acceptance into a sys sition, awaited them upon reaching this age. In Sparta, competition was considered valuable in the martial training of the boys. However, these competitions were not done singularly. Cooperation was considered essential. Therefore, groups of boys were placed together to create rivalries among each other.
During these competitions, the most talented youths proved themselves as leaders, thereby solidifying their place among their peers, so that when the time came, they would also become leaders in the army. These competitions served as a form of preliminary military training for the young men up until the age of twenty. When they reached that age, each one grew their hair long, shaved their face in traditional Spartan style-a long beard and no moustache, and was now an official member of the army. One extraordinary ordeal the young men endured before passing into manhood was that of the krypteia. During his period of concealment, the young man hid out by himself in the countryside and was required to hunt and kill helots at night (Daily Life in Greece p- 87). This strange and brutal test of the boys manhood served two purposes for Spartan society.
One, it directly controlled the population of the helots, and two, it gave the boy valuable experience in the unnatural field of killing. As always, every event mandated by the state was for the sole purpose of creating a warrior that would die for his homeland. Bibliography: Bibliography Aristotle. The Nicomachea n Ethics.
David Ross. Ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. Aristotle. The Politics. T.
A. Sinclair. Ed. New York: Viking Press, 1992. Flaceliere, Robert. Daily Life In Greece At The Time Of Pericles.
New York: The MacMillan Company, 1965. Herodotus. The Histories. Carolyn Deals. Ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Plato. Protagoras. C. C. W.
Taylor. Ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996. Plutarch.
Lives of Noble Grecian and Romans. A. H. Clough. Ed. New York: Modern Library, 1992.
Pomeroy, Sarah B. et al. Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Van Hook, La Rue. Greek Life and Thought. New York: Columbia University Press, 1930. Xenophon.
Xenophon in Seven Volumes. E. C. Marchant.
Ed. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1984.
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