Athens, is a city located on the peninsula Attica, (Webster, 1973) and is known for its,

art, intellect, and social culture. Ancient Athens was intensely democratic, literary, and liberal as
compared to other ancient Greek societies like Sparta which was an oligarchical and unliterary
(Tucker, 1936). Athens grew as a powerful democracy from 454 B.C.E to 404 B.C.E until its
downfall to Sparta and their allies during the Peloponnesian War in 431 B.C.E. till 404 B.C.E.
In Athens, society was structured as higher class, middle class, lower class, and salves. Growing
up in Ancient Athens was something of public policy and moral standards where while growing
up, there is a certain protocol to follow which was socially acceptable by society.
Athenian children were social beings almost from the beginning of life and under strict
laws of the fifth century; a citizen must be an offspring of a legally acknowledged marriage
between two Athenian citizens. However in order to become a citizen and a member of the
household; the head of the house had to accept the child and could reject the child if he chooses
so. Females were more often rejected over males because women were seen as less than men and
were usually put in the background of life publicly and socially. At a young age, if lucky, a girl
would learn how to read, write or play a musical instrument through the teachings of her mother
or a slave and not in the traditional educational system. (Golden, 1990) In her youth, a girl was
thought her domestic duties of the house, seeing as socially, the womans place was inside the
house. She would learn how to weave, spin, embroider, cooking and domestic management. This
was as far as a young females education would go. As she grows older, the female becomes
closer to being married and becoming what Athenian society views as a woman. (Tucker, 1936)
By the age of 16, a female could marry, and with this came the responsibilities she
learned during her youth. As a woman, she could not own any property and always had to have a
male guardian to watch over her. Her function as a wife is very clear, it was her duty to take care

of the house, manage the slaves, and have children to preserve the family line. She could not
leave the house except to attend recognized occasions by the society. She was seen as inferior to
all males, intellectually and morally and they were barred from any political activity.
Almost all female children in the middle to lower class were brought up this way.
Higher classed women had the ability to go freely as the pleased and were seen as highly
educated. They were educated in singing, music, dancing, conversation, and other ways of
pleasing men. These women however were not as respected as wives have been, but had the
choice of more freedom.
Males in Ancient Athens society were viewed higher than females and were more
respected. At a young age boys were nursed and brought up by either a slave or a foster-mother
who would care for him as would a mother. This nursing style was also used for females as well.
Till the age of seven, a boy is raised by women in a womens domain until he is handed over to a
male slave who will watch over him during the process of his education. A young boy would go
to certain schools to learn the proper education of certain task that society viewed as important
for a boy to known when he comes to age. The public insisted that all male citizens should be
educated, (Tucker, 1936) and if he is not educated he would not have to care for his father at his
old age. This helped set value on education in Athens and answers why they are as liberal and
literary as a society.
Their educational system for a male consists of reading, writing, literary appreciation,
music and physical training. Ancient Athens viewed education as a means to self-culture and
worthy citizenship unlike that of Sparta whose education focused more so on technical skill and
livelihood.

A young boy will first start at the basic level of education which is learning the A, B, Cs
and how to read and write. After this he will move on to read poets, like that of Homer and
memorize passages by heart. Next boys would attend music school at the age of around thirteen
and learn the means of singing and learning how to play a common instrument called the lyre.
One of the most famous schools in Athens was founded by the philosopher Plato in 387
B.C.E. called the Platonic Academy. Here Plato taught his knowledge on philosophy and
sciences which were later carried on by one of his students Aristotle. Aristotle founded another
famous school called the Lyceum. (Hilbert, 1988) The school was informal without a set
curriculum and members would learn again about philosophy and other scientific inquires. These
schools were seen as an untraditional for what a traditional school would teach young boys.
Many men who completed their education at one of these institutes of learning were viewed as
scholars and helped continue the learning of philosophy either at the school or in surrounding
areas.
After the boys finish the intellectual part of his education, he is then sent into his physical
training process where they learn to swim and wrestle. After this, boys will either continue their
education to military training or if from a poor class would return to their work if they have not
already finishing their growing into a man. If continuing their education in military training, boys
are taught how to use weapons and other military tactics. Athens was known for its strong navy
and water based tactics in war.
By the end of military training, a boy has completed his education as viewed by the
society of Athens as a man who is able to do as he will for the rest of his life. As a man, they
could have a role in the government, and spend a great deal of their time away from their house.

When not involved in politics, the men spent time in the fields, overseeing or working the crops,
sailing, hunting, in manufacturing or in trade. (Hilbert, 1988)
This method of growing up was considerably different than that of the Greek city-state
Sparta. Which as stated earlier was a very oligarchy government and very military based. While
Athenian boys were learning to read and write, Spartan boys were learning how to use a weapon
and warfare. These two opposites contributed and led to conflict between the two states that later
was the Peloponnesian wars.
Athens advancing democracy after a while began to spread and dominate other Greek
city-states, increasing its Athens power. When Athens concluded an alliance with Corcyra in 433
B.C.E Sparta started to fear that Athens is becoming too powerful and will soon become a
dominating empire. When Athens started to go after Spartas ally Megara, peace seemed
inevitable. The Athenian leader Pericles refused to do so because that means Athens would be
accepting Spartas request and not be the dominating power they seemed to be. This was not
acceptable to Athens, and war broke out. Athens was attacked by Sparta and fighting continued
until 404 BCE when Athens surrendered and their empire was dissolved. Sparta then established
them as the main power over Greece. Athenian democratic leaders left the city of Athens and
began to form armies in near-by city-states Corinth and Thebes. The Spartans oligarchy ruled
with its thirty members known as the "the Thirty Tyrants. Eventually the Athenians were
allowed to return to a democracy (Tucker, 1936) while Sparta went about establishing an empire
of its own.

Athens would later start another war with Sparta known as the Corinthian War in 395
B.C.E. where Athens defeated Sparta only to be ruled by another Greek kingdom Macedon in
338 B.C.E. ending Athens independence. Athens however, would still remain a wealth city with
a vibrant social life, but would cease to have independent power in Greece. This shows that even
during a time of struggle in Ancient Athens, their public policy and private morality still are
considered highly to all Athenians. This is why Athens was known as the first known
democracy, and is a model for other governments today.

Works Cited
Golden, M. (1990). Childhood in Classical Athens. Baltimore, Maryland: The Johns Hopkins University
Press.
Hilbert, R. W. (1988). Life and Learning in Ancient Athens. Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
Tucker, T. G. (1936). Life in Ancient Athens. London: The Macmillan Company.
Webster, T. B. (1973). Athenian Culture and Society. Los Angeles: University of California Press.