Athens A Better City State example essay topic

Athens and Sparta were both well-developed city-states, but each had their own ways of living. Athens seemed to be a little more organized than Sparta. However, Sparta was mostly based on a strong military. Athens is clearly a better city-state to live in, in comparison to Sparta, because of its politics, economics, and culture. Unlike Sparta, Athens was a democracy, which means it was ruled by the people, not by kings, or representatives. The idea of a democracy, made Athens a better city-state than Sparta.

It gives people, men 18 or older, the right to express their ideas freely by voting on certain ideas. However women did not have the right to vote. A democracy also helped the city-state run smoother than Sparta, and previous city-states. The Athens also had a council of 500 men, which was very efficient and beneficial, and it contributed a lot in politics and government. A democracy also helped keep laws and people a little more equal than in Sparta, because the upper class wasn't favored more than the lower class. Even though in a democracy disputes between ideas sometimes occur, they could be easily solved by the council, unlike in Sparta.

Disagreements probably came up more often in Sparta, because they had two kings, and it's a known fact that two different people, both wanting the most power, don't always agree. A democracy helped economics and trade with other city-states develop and become very successful. Economics played a huge role in the development of Athens, especially trade. Athens imported 50-80% of their food and products, which means trade was extremely important to them.

Athens was the leading trade center, which was very important to people of Athens, and if something went wrong they would have a lot of problems. However, importing more than half of their food is also very good, because it allowed many people to have other jobs, and everyone did not just farm, which allowed a wide variety of jobs. Athens also had a port, which helped it become the leading trade center, because they could then trade by sea and by land. The culture of Athens was very important. Music was used to relax people and express harmony. Children were educated to create well-rounded, intelligent people, but the education stopped at the age of 18.

They had pottery however they were best known for there beautiful columns. The Athenians were not just into fighting, like the Spartans, they had many outdoor activities to provide some fun for the citizens. Religious festivals were held mostly by women, since they didn't work and stayed at home to make sure the house stayed in order. Olympic games were also held, but most of the events were just held for men to show off their strength. Plays were another activity that were held in outdoor theaters.

Athens seems a lot more organized and civilized city-state than Sparta and it would be more preferable to live in. This is proven by the well organized government and politics, well-developed economy, and their culture.