Spartan Traditions

Ancient Greeks influenced our popular tradition of Mardi Gras. Many parades that are held during the Mardi Gras season are

Architecture was one of the essential parts of the Spartan cultural life. The main sites for Spartan architecture were Amyklaios, the Menelaion and the sanctuary of Artimis Orthia. The sanctuary of Apollo Amyklaios, five kilometres south of Sparta was populated from

In ancient Greece, they had many different gods and goddesses that represented aspects of life. Some of the gods controlled natural forces such as thunder or water, while others represented abstract concepts like wisdom. Rather than being perfect, the Greek gods were given personality flaws, and behaved similarly to humans. The Greek gods were a huge influence in the culture and technology of ancient Greece. The art made of the Greek gods gave them a highly idealized appearance. In sculptures, carvings, and paintings, they were made to look flawless. Another type of art that was influenced by the Greek gods were stage performances. The amphitheatre, which was an amazing technological invention, was a huge stage where actors performed tales of the gods. There were festivals dedicated to the Greek gods as well, such as the Festival of Lycaeus in Arcadia, which was dedicated to the god Pan.

The people of Sparta didn’t keep a written record of their history, events or customs, instead, it was orally shared. However, Non-Spartans, usually Athenians, did write about what they knew about Sparta and some of the events the Spartans were involved in. Much speculation has occurred as to the reliability of these accounts, not just because of the writers own predisposition, but also because of the secretive tendencies of the Spartans and their own form of propaganda that created a reputation known as the “Spartan Mirage”. Due to inconsistencies in the archaeological evidence and written sources, it is theorised that the Spartans formed a reputation for themselves that may or may not be completely accurate.

In ancient Greece, around 500 B.C.E, the culture was revolving around gods and goddesses. The lifestyles and actions of the people of Greece had an interdependence with the common belief of Hellenism. By understanding that many Greeks looked to their gods and goddesses in most aspects of their life, we can better understand how Greek culture worked as a whole. This can be seen specifically in Athens Greece. In Athens they looked to the Goddess Athena in particular because she was their patron Goddess. During this time a sculptor, named Phidias, sculpted a grand statue called the Athena Parthenos. The Athena Parthenos was viewed as an actual incarnation of the Goddess Athena, and symbolize victory in wars that ultimately create peace and harmony.

Traditions and customs make a group of people different from others. For example many families have different traditions when it comes to holidays, like fireworks for the 4th of July or making turkey for thanksgiving. All these types of traditions are important in daily life. In The Odyssey by Homer, many examples of Greece customs and

In ancient Greece festivals were mainly held at the Great Dionysia. This was the oldest theatre in Greece and many plays were performed here for example the first performance of Antigone. The patron of the theatre was the God

Bibliography•HSC Online Ancient History Ancient Sparta Notes:http://hsc.csu.edu.au/ancient_history/societies/greece/spartan_society/sparta_unbringing/ancient_sparta_upbringing.htmThis source was effective as it gave a range of information, particularly about life in the agoge and training of girls. It also had many useful references to ancient sources such as Plutarch. The only drawback is that it seems to gain most of its information from Plutarch, meaning that a wider range of sources may have

     The Dionysian Festivals lasted for several days along with the drama competitions. The performances were always done during the day and the drinking at night! Little or no makeup was worn by the actors, instead they wore masks with exaggerated facial expressions. Actors were always male and played more than one role, so the masks helped portray different characters, races, and sexes. Not much scenery was used and usually the majority of the play took place in the orchestra. When attention was shifted to the actors, however, the action was played on stage.

In opposition to the Spartans, Athenians lived very social lives. They spent there days in the agora; to meet family and friends, wander around to see foreign foods or go to the boarder to gossip. Other actives include; exercise in the 'palestra', relaxing in public baths, festivals and parties. Gambling and drinking however, were the chief activities in the night such as cock fighting and games of dice. Socially, Sparta and Athens had many things in common however, they also came into conflict about many aspects of social life.

Naturalist John Lubbock studied human nature through Charles Darwin’s evolutionary perspective. In his book, Prehistoric Times, he compared elephants to humans, arguing that just as modern elephants reflect the anatomy of extinct ones, modern primitive societies uncover evidence of the behavior of prehistoric societies. In his study of archaeology, Lubbock noted that the environment played a large role in constructing “kind” and “degree” among human groups. Through the utilization of Darwin’s ideas, John Lubbock credited natural selection as the force that distinguished human groups by their cultural capacities, marking the movement towards cultural evolution. Lubbock saw modern Europeans as products of an evolutionary change that advanced

In “The Greek Gods” from The Romans Anne Millard and Susan Peach describes that the Greeks had monthly festivals for the Greek gods. Their goal was to persuade the gods to grant their wishes. Some families were so religious to the gods

The City Dionysia Festival was a celebration of the god Dionysus’ arrival in Athens in mythical times and was usually held annually between March and April. The festival and theater performances were ways of honoring the god Dionysus, who is the god of the grape harvest,

During the era before Classical Greece Sparta and Athena had different paths because Sparta had two kings and an oligarchic government, while Athens had instituted democracy. Sparta treated men to be warriors and women could have their own properties, while in Athena men were trained to be public speakers and women had only several rights. Despite the differences they joined to a war against Persia, and after that there was a Peloponnesian war between the two poleis, where Athena lost, at the end, Sparta, Athena and Thebes each took turn on the dominant Greek power. One interesting fact is also that the buildings that they built had a political purpose also to celebrate civil power and pride.

In Ancient Greece religion and theater went hand in hand. The Greeks developed religion that was based on worship of many Gods. In honor of the Gods there were festivals with dancing, music, and theatrical performances. During the festivals the whole city would come to a complete stand still. All businesses were closed, politics were put on the back burner, and wars were halted. All social classes were welcome to come to the festival, and they all did. One of the most famous religious festivals is the City Dionysia, a festival in honor of the god Dionysus, god of wine, revelry, and fertility. The festival was held in ancient Athens, in March for five days, featuring dramatic competitions. These dramatic competitions consisted of dithyrambs, tragedies, comedies, and satyr plays. The tragedy competition was four plays per playwright, three tragedies and one satyr play. There were two processions; the first was carrying the statue of Dionysus from the temple to the theater of Dionysus at the foot of the Acropolis. The second were the patrons parading through the