While reading about Sparta I was initially shocked to hear about the timeline that the men followed. For many, life as a citizen did not even start until the age of 30, and to be participating on the council you had to be 60 years of age. I guess my initial understanding was that most individuals during this time period were lucky to reach the age of 30 let alone 60. I guess I was naïve to the fact that their quality of life was much more advanced then in the coming generations.
It was also interesting to see the similarities in the relationship between the helots and Spartans, and the slaves and American land owners. I do not condone slavery in anyway and I find it completely appalling and immoral. However the similarities between the Spartans and plantation owners can not be ignored. The system of life that was brought about due to slavery is almost identical. The slave population in America began to exceed that of their white counterparts in some areas, and in response measures had to be taken to if need be suppress a rebellion. In Sparta a similar thinking was involved, and with the slave population greatly outnumbering the Spartan population Sparta had to become a completely militaristic society. In both cases the economy of the nations was based completely on the production from the slaves. Both were utterly oppressive societies that in the end could never prosper due to the evil of slavery.
When talking about democracy Aristotle hit it right on the head when he said that the middle class held the power in a democracy. He goes on to say a city state with a strong middle class will prosper, because a city made up of masters and slaves is more likely to form dissension and fall apart. This again reminds me of the society we live in today; where the middle class is that buffer which ultimately decides much of the democratic process. You can see the genius of Aristotle now thousands of years later, because what he said is coming true today.
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There are many analogies between the modern and the ancient. Nate, you make a good one with the southern plantations and the Spartans. I see a parallel between Israel and Sparta, in that they are a small nation, and therefore do not have the luxury of a surplus of the population to be a volunteer component of their military force. In Israel, unless you are a full time student of some sort, you must serve two years in the military. I don't know the exact details, but I know that in Israel, that includes women as well. Were there any concessions made for Spartan men to be some kind of scribe or something? Also, did their training began at as young of an age as was depicted in the movie, "300"?
As for the reason they had to become militaristic, it seems their are a few reasons for that. The first would have been the way the conquered were integrated into Spartan life. They were slaves and nothing more, or so it seems. In other societies, such as in Athens, though they seemed to retain more rights. Another reason I believe is that the Spartans had to protect themselves from the other Greek societies. There were those among these other societies that were sympathetic or even loyal to the Persians. There were enemies within and without.
So the Spartan boys left home at the age of 7...ok. I still wonder about the concessions made for people who may have been obviously more viable as a scribe or some other profession, or were they slaves too? Hmmm...
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