Question

How did people in Athens and Sparta obtain the right to participate in public life and make decisions affecting the community? Who held public office? What rules governed the selection of public office holders? How were the two city-states similar in their governmental structures? How did they differ?

Answer 1

Answer:

In Sparta, the first line of decision-making opportunity for the public was the group called The Assembly. As long as a citizen of Sparta was male and free, they were considered members of the assembly. The exception to this eligibility is when a free male Spartan lost his citizenship. The next level of public office was the Gerousia. Assembly members at the age of 60 would be eligible for this position but they had to be chosen. The next level up after the Gerousia was the group of Euphors, another office held by appointment only. There were also two kings. So in essence, the people of Sparta could no way ‘obtain the right to participate’, but they had to firstly be male and free to be eligible and then they could be ‘chosen’ to have the opportunity to make a difference in their community.

As Dr. Peter Brand puts it, “True power was in the hands of an ‘elder council’ of men over 60 called Gerousia and five magistrates called Euphors who were elected annually and served for one year terms in office.”(Brand, 2010:9)

In Athens, decision-making was eligible to free male citizens, born to Athenian parents. Weight in decision-making was based on level of wealth. According to Brand(2010), a minority group called Thetes, were comprised of the top three income groups: 500 bushel men, the 300 bushel men and the 200 bushel men who could serve in political stations equivalent to their rank in wealth. Those free men who fell below this income level could serve and vote in the assembly. This group formed the majority of the eligible citizens that could make a contribution to the community.

There was also a legislative council referred to as ‘Boule’ that comprised of 500 councilors. “500 councilors were chosen each year, 50 from each tribe drawn from every part of Attica.”(Brand, 2010:19) Another group, which was not allowed to serve politically but only economically, was the Metics. They were free foreigners or“resident aliens” as Brand put it.

Both Athens and Sparta required political contributors to be male, citizens and free.They both also consisted of Assemblies that served as the most basic form of political contribution. Both governments condoned slavery, even though entirely different forms of it.

Sparta had two Kings simultaneously whereas Athens had only one at a time. InSparta, almost all high political offices were appointed while in Athens eligible men could choose to join such offices based on their wealth, although some offices were by appointment only. Sparta was more of a military state as opposed to Athens, which was more of a “cultural and economic’’ state. It was mandatory for all Spartan men to serve in the military, while in Athens only the Thetes- 500, 300 and 200 bushel men- were eligible to serve in the military.

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