Historian Helena P. Schrader discusses ancient Spar tan society and culture, seeking to rectify a
number of common misconceptions. She also provides excerpts from her biographical novels
about Leonidas and reviews of books on ancient Spar ta.
Sunday, July 31, 2016
The Myth of Spartan Pederasty
No myth about Sparta is as persistent or controversial as the claim that pederasty and homosexuality dominated Spartan
society. Even highly reputable historians such as Paul Cartledge subscribe to this theory. However, the evidence against
it is far more more compelling than for it.
Xenophon, the only historian with firsthand experience of the agoge (his sons attended it!), states explicitly: "… [Lycurgus]
… laid down that in Sparta lovers should refrain from molesting boys, just as much as parents avoid having intercourse with
their children or brothers with their sisters." It is hard to find a more definitive statement than this, and from the most
credible source. To dismiss this evidence simply because it does not suit preconceived ideas is arrogant.
Xenophon adds: "It does not surprise me, however, that some people do not believe this, since in many cities the laws do
not oppose lusting after boys." This is the crux of the matter. All of our written sources on Sparta come from these other
cities, where pederasty was rampant. In short, the bulk of the written record on Sparta stems from men who could not
imagine a world without homosexual love and pederasty. But then, they also could not imagine women who were
educated, physically fit, and economically powerful, who were not also licentious and lewd. Modern readers ought to
recognize that pederasty is not inherent in society – particularly not in a society where women are well integrated.
Achilles and P atrokles - Ancient Lo vers
My position is supported by another ancient authority, Aristotle, who blamed all of Sparta's ills on the fact that the women
were in control of things – a fact that he attributed to the lack of homosexuality in Spartan society generally. In this
Aristotle exhibits an astonishing appreciation of psychology. Modern research conclusively shows that male victims of
child abuse generally grow into misogynous men. The status of women in Athens fits this pattern perfectly, while the
status of women in Sparta completely contradicts – indeed, refutes – the thesis that Spartan men were systematically
subjected to sexual abuse by their elders as children. (An excellent discussion of child abuse in ancient Greece can be
found in Enid Bloch's "Sex Between Men and Boys in Classical Greece: Was it Education for Citizenship or Child Abuse?,"
in Journal of Men's Studies, January 2001.)
Finally, Herodotus, who was always happy to provide some juicy little story about a man who covets a close friend's wife,
or one who steals a rival's bride just before the wedding, has not a single tale in which there is mention of a Spartan with
a male lover – either boy or man. This omission is significant and should not be ignored.
The archaeological evidence from Sparta likewise demonstrates an almost complete absence of pornographic images on
artifacts. This is in sharp contrast to the plethora of explicitly pornographic art from both Athens and Corinth. While
pederasty is as frequently depicted in Athenian and Corinthian art as heterosexual sex, no homoerotic art originating in
Sparta has -- to my knowledge -- been found or identified. (Please correct me, if I am wrong!)
This image shows the peplos, still worn by Spartan women but considered lewd by Athenians; Spartan women allegedly
also learned to use the bow.
On the other hand, some of the most important and lovely pieces of Spartan sculpture depict couples sitting side by side.
Regardless of whom the figures were intended to depict (Helen and Menelaos, Chilon and his wife, a Spartan king and
his queen), what is significant is the greater importance given to depictions of a man and wife sitting side by side – that
is, in partnership – compared to depictions of sexual intercourse. This is because marriage in Sparta was a partnership,
not a tyranny as in the rest of Greece. Nor was a Spartan marriage merely for reproduction, it was also consciously
intended to bring sexual satisfaction to both partners. Xenophon explains that Spartan laws required men and women to
marry in their physical prime and not when too young (for girls) or too old (for men), and that they should be initially
restricted in their sexual contact so as to not to become satiated, but rather to enjoy sex together. Note that there is
explicit emphasis on the desirability of the female partner enjoying sex as much as the male.
Thus, rather than being something frightful and dangerous that male relatives needed to vigilantly guard (as in the rest of
Greece), female sexuality was perceived in Sparta as a positive factor that contributed to a good marriage, to healthy
children, and so to the well-being of the state.
This acceptance of women's sexuality is further underlined by the fact that while Athenian plays demean and insult
women (see any of Euripides' plays), the poems of Alkman, considered the most Spartan of all poets by the ancient
Greeks, openly admire women. His poems, written in the second half of the 7th century BC, were the lyrics of songs
performed at public festivals by girls' choruses. Alkman also wrote poetry expressing his own adoration of the Spartan
girls he worked with. He was considered by ancient scholars to be the first love poet – a notable distinction for the poet
whom the ancients viewed as "the most Spartan"! None of Alkman's texts can be classed as pornographic, but many
modern commentators assert – because the texts of the lyrics, designed to be sung by girls' choruses, praise the girls'
beauty – that the songs were lesbian in nature. This is nonsense. Boys' and men's choruses sang about bravery and girls
about beauty because those were the virtues admired in each respective group. What the texts (and the fact that Alkman
was so revered in Sparta) tell us is that the Spartans enjoyed light-hearted music and tributes to female beauty in a public
context -- not merely in the back alleys of the red-light district.
Furthermore, while female sexuality was recognized and respected, Spartan males were expected to find sexual
satisfaction within marriage. Thus Sparta was reputed to have no brothels at all within the city limits, and Spartans
claimed to know neither whores nor adultery. To date, the archaeological evidence supports the assertion that there were
no brothels in Sparta, and the absence of heterosexual (as with homosexual) pornographic artwork further supports the
thesis that in contrast to other cities, sex in Sparta was a private – rather than a public – affair.
Given the fact that Spartan sexuality was so different from that of the other Greeks, it is not surprising that foreign
observers of Sparta in the archaic and classical periods have a great deal to say about Spartan sexual relations. The fact
that the most famous adulteress of ancient myth, Helen of Troy, was Spartan contributed to the general view of Spartan
women as licentious, a view explicitly underlined by Aristotle in his diatribe against Spartan women. The legal right to
"wife sharing" further influenced the view of women as sexually uncontrolled – even though the law was clearly designed
to serve the state's need for new generations of citizens, not women's lust, and could only occur with the husband's
consent. Likewise, the fact that Spartan women were educated, outspoken, and seen in public elicited universal
condemnation from other Greeks. Thus Euripides says in Andromache: "Spartan girls could not be chaste even if they
wanted to. They leave home, and with naked thighs and their dresses loosened, they share the running tracks and
gymnasiums with the young men." It was inconceivable to an Athenian that a woman could go to school with boys and
engage in sports in front of boys without becoming sexually degraded as well. Modern readers, however, should not lose
sight of the fact that Athenian playwrights were attacking their enemy when they described Spartans. Describing the
wives of an enemy as whores and the men as "faggots" was (and still is) a common – if juvenile – means of belittling a
foe.
In conclusion, contemporary sources suggest that Sparta was not a particularly homoerotic society, and certainly there
was no institutionalized pederasty or homosexual behavior prior to the mid-5th century BC. On the contrary, in Sparta
women's sexuality was not only recognized, but respected and to a degree encouraged. Spartan artifacts furthermore
suggest that Sparta was indeed more prudish than other Greek societies. The evidence suggests that sex in Sparta was
a private matter, sought inside marriage, rather than public entertainment pursued at symposia and on the streets as in
Athens. The Spartan ideal of sex was an activity between equals, not an act of domination by an adult male upon a child,
a slave, or an illiterate and powerless wife.
My depiction of Spartan society in the Leonidas trilogy is based on the above analysis. Pederasty plays no role in the agoge.
4
7 comments:
Mystic Scholar July 31, 2016 at 10:11 PM
Nooo! Every novel I've read about Sparta says . . . wait a minute. Did I say "novel?" Doh!
Reply
Ray Devlin
Paul Cartledge writes about about "institutionalised pederasty" at Sparta. He seems to discount these
primary sources that refute such a claim. Which is why I've always discounted Paul Cartledge's claims.
The so-called "Spartan Mirage" seems to be a very selective tool in the hands of historians. It is the same
with the repeated claims about throwing disabled infants off a certain cliff -- never-mind that one of
Sparta's most famous kings was lame; and no infant-remains were ever found during investigations at
the alleged site.
The investigators did find the remains of adults, presumably criminals. Yet you still see the same old
nonsense about killing babies. Many ancient societies practiced exposure of unwanted infants, but it is a
stretch to link this to state sponsored eugenics.
Thus historians seem to pick and choose what the "Spartan Mirage" actually conceals. Baby-killing and
child molestation are accepted as fact and not anti-Spartan distortions; yet the notion of the self-
controlled warrior philosopher is dismissed as an idealised concept cr
eated by Socrates (see Lipka).
Who would dare suggest the more reasonable notion that Socrates was inspired by a realised Sparta ;)
Ray,
Thank you for your comment. I share your bafflement with the academic establishment. There is so
much written by allegedly "noted" historians that is illogical and unfounded. I'll post an entry on the
alleged "infanticide" of the Spartans later which reminds people that the slaughter of female infants was
normal in Athens. I hate the hypocracy! Its alright to "expose" females infants just because they're female
but a crime against humanity to kill deformed males!
Again, thanks for stopping by.
Helena
Johan Granlund August 17, 2016 at 3:15 PM
Hi Helena, I wanted to thank you for bringing this to my attention several years ago. Before I just
accepted the "Spartans were gay" thing. Checking it out it's astounding how just about all sources
explains, often in great detail, why Sparta didn't care for homosexual or pederastic relations.
Would you know what exactly Cartledge bases his claims on?
I read a google excerpt out of his book, where he dismisses Aristotle with that. - Sure adult
homosexuality wasn't acceptable but that doesn't mean they didn't have sex with boys.
Yet he doesn't even try to reconcile this with Aristotle's explanation. That the unusual empowerment of
Spartan women is due to the men having to turn to them for sex. If boys are an acceptable sexual outlet
as Cartledge suggest how does Aristotle make any sense?
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I haven't read Cartledge recently, so I can't say for sure. What I remember is exactly what you
say: he dismissed any suggestion that the Spartans were pedophiles with a contemptuous "of
course they were and you'd be an idiot to think otherwise" but no serious argument that greatly
infuriated me. He seemed to be saying: "This is what I think and I'm the expert so no one has
the right to question, much less disagree with. me. I AM THE EXPERT. PERIOD." It did not make
me respect hm.
American Notice October 14, 2016 at 6:13 PM
"… [Lycurgus] … laid down that in Sparta lovers should refrain from molesting boys, just as much as
parents avoid having intercourse with their children or brothers with their sisters."
Maybe that needed to be said because there was too much pederasty happening.
Why would anyone condemn something if it was not a problem?
Possibly -- in 850 AD or whenever Lycurgus lived. The point is, when pederasty was rampant
and normal in the rest of the Greek world, Sparta had already moved far beyond -- for three
hundred years or more. It was, quite simply, three to four hundred years more advanced than
the rest of the Greek cities. It was more civilized and less perverse.
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