Athens Vs Sparta Research Paper

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When we hear of the Greek city, Sparta, we often relate it to the capital of Greece, which is Athens. Although there were similarities in the two cities, including their geographical locations, there was also a strong rivalry between them, caused by the desire to gain power, protection, and many other factors. Understandably, because Sparta and Athens were located so close to each other there were many similarities as well as differences, in terms of their society, economy, and political standpoints. Athens, named after Athena, the goddess of wisdom, was considered the intellectual center of Greece. Many Athenians intended to become athletes or soldiers, or focus on philosophy and other areas that focused on the beauty of different works of art, including music and pottery. Athenians in ancient Greece had the mindset that a person’s individuality was the groundwork for a successful community. Because of this idea, Athenians were given much freedom, but were required to follow the laws that were in place in Greece. Like many cities during ancient times…show more content…
Spartans depended on slaves and conquered people to farm and care for their products. Taking use of city-states that were located close to Sparta allowed them to take use of their fertile soil, which resulted in healthy, growing produce. Unlike Spartans, who did not believe in participating in trading, people of ancient Athens encouraged the idea of trade for their source of income. Being located near water, Athens had easy access to many different cities and foreign lands. There were also markets in Athens that allowed farmers and merchants to sell goods, such as olive oil, wine, pottery, and jewelry. Another difference in Spartan and Athenian economy was their source of money. Sparta used iron rods as money to make it difficult to steal, but Athens used gold and silver to make coins for their coin system to allow for easy trade

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