The Greek City-States: Sparta and Athens
Of the hundreds of city-states that evolved during the Archaic Age, (800- 479 B.C.), Sparta and Athens stand out for their vividly contrasting styles of life and their roles in subsequent Greek history. Sparta, the principal symbol of Dorian civilization, chose to guarantee its integrity and future through stringent and uncompromising policies. The earliest Spartans forcibly enslaved the Helots, the original inhabitants of the lower part of Peloponnese, a peninsula forming the southern part of Greece. To prevent rebellions and to control the Helots, who outnumbered the Spartans ten to one, a vigilant Sparta was forced to keep its military always on the alert. Thus, Sparta created a rigid hierarchical society of well-trained, tough, and athletic men, women, and children. The Spartans also established a genuine oligarchy: a constitutional government operated by five officials elected annually by a small body of citizens. The ruling class, obsessed with keeping social order, passed laws forbidding immigration, limiting material possessions, and restricting creativity. Sparta was admired for its loyal, brave soldiers and its stable social order. But Sparta contributed little to the artistic enrichment of Greece.
By contrast, Athens, the symbol of Ionian civilization, reached greater artistic, intellectual, and literary heights than did any other Greek city-state. Athens, both the city and its surrounding countryside of Attica, was a more open society than Sparta. The Attic clans shared a sense of community with the Athenians and supported them in wartime.
The history of Athens echoes the general pattern of change in the Greek city-states during the Archaic Age. Aristocrats initially ruled Athens through councils and assemblies. As long as farming and trading sustained an expanding population, the nobles ruled without challenge. But at the beginning of the sixth century B.C., many peasant farmers were burdened with debts and were threatened with prison or slavery. Having no voice in the government, the farmers began to protest what they perceived as unfair laws.
In about 590 B.C., the Athenians granted an aristocrat named Solon special powers to reform the economy. He abolished debts and guaranteed a free peasantry, overhauled the judicial system, and recorded the laws. Solon also restructured the Athenian constitution by giving the lower ranks of freemen, those without great name or noble family but with some property or wealth, the right to participate in government.
Solon’s principal successor was Cleisthenes, who established democracy in Athens beginning in 508 B.C. He broadened the governmental base by opening it to all free male citizens (called the demos) regardless of their property or bloodlines. Cleisthenes’ democratic reforms, which lasted for almost two centuries, created an atmosphere in which civic pride and artistic energy were unleashed, inaugurating the Hellenistic age that made Athens both the pride and the envy of the other Greek city-states.
For moderns, one of the most surprising contrasts between Sparta and Athens is the difference in the roles and status of women. In general, Spartan women spent their time outside and spoke freely to men; Athenian women were kept in seclusion and rarely talked with their husbands. Spartan women were made so independent because, above all else, they were expected to be strong mothers of the vigorous males needed to maintain this warrior society. To that end, Spartan women alone among Greek women were given public education, including choral singing and dancing, archery, and athletics. Spartan women were also unique in being able to own land and to manage their own property.
In contrast, the women of Athens pursued respectability as an ideal, which meant that they were supposed to marry and stay indoors, overseeing their households and performing domestic chores. It is not clear how strictly this ideal was imposed on them in daily life. Athenian drama contains many instances of female characters complaining about their powerlessness, as when a wife is abandoned (Euripides’ Medea) or a woman is left during wartime (Aeschylus’ Agamemnon). These examples probably reflected reality. Athenian women, lacking public education and excluded by law from government and the military, played a subordinate role to Athenian men.
1.Of the hundreds of city-states that evolved during the Archaic Age, (800- 479 B.C.), Sparta and Athens stand out for their vividly contrasting styles of life and their roles in subsequent Greek history. Sparta, the principal symbol of Dorian civilization, chose to guarantee its integrity and future through stringent and uncompromising policies. The earliest Spartans forcibly enslaved the Helots, the original inhabitants of the lower part of Peloponnese, a peninsula forming the southern part of Greece. To prevent rebellions and to control the Helots, who outnumbered the Spartans ten to one, a vigilant Sparta was forced to keep its military always on the alert. Thus, Sparta created a rigid hierarchical society of well-trained, tough, and athletic men, women, and children. The Spartans also established a genuine oligarchy: a constitutional government operated by five officials elected annually by a small body of citizens. The ruling class, obsessed with keeping social order, passed laws forbidding immigration, limiting material possessions, and restricting creativity. Sparta was admired for its loyal, brave soldiers and its stable social order. But Sparta contributed little to the artistic enrichment of Greece.
The word“stringent” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Vocabulary Questions词汇题
Adeliberate
Bimpressive
Cstrict
Ddecisive
2.Of the hundreds of city-states that evolved during the Archaic Age, (800- 479 B.C.), Sparta and Athens stand out for their vividly contrasting styles of life and their roles in subsequent Greek history. Sparta, the principal symbol of Dorian civilization, chose to guarantee its integrity and future through stringent and uncompromising policies. The earliest Spartans forcibly enslaved the Helots, the original inhabitants of the lower part of Peloponnese, a peninsula forming the southern part of Greece. To prevent rebellions and to control the Helots, who outnumbered the Spartans ten to one, a vigilant Sparta was forced to keep its military always on the alert. Thus, Sparta created a rigid hierarchical society of well-trained, tough, and athletic men, women, and children. The Spartans also established a genuine oligarchy: a constitutional government operated by five officials elected annually by a small body of citizens. The ruling class, obsessed with keeping social order, passed laws forbidding immigration, limiting material possessions, and restricting creativity. Sparta was admired for its loyal, brave soldiers and its stable social order. But Sparta contributed little to the artistic enrichment of Greece.
Which of the following can be inferred from paragraph 1 about the relationship between the Helots and the Spartans?
Inference Questions推理题
AThe Helots had the strongest military in Greek civilization before they were conquered by the Spartans.
BThe Helots were not happy to have been dominated by the Spartans.
CTheir different styles of life made the Helots and the Spartans natural enemies.
DThe labor of the Helots enabled the Spartans to use more resources for their military.
3.Of the hundreds of city-states that evolved during the Archaic Age, (800- 479 B.C.), Sparta and Athens stand out for their vividly contrasting styles of life and their roles in subsequent Greek history. Sparta, the principal symbol of Dorian civilization, chose to guarantee its integrity and future through stringent and uncompromising policies. The earliest Spartans forcibly enslaved the Helots, the original inhabitants of the lower part of Peloponnese, a peninsula forming the southern part of Greece. To prevent rebellions and to control the Helots, who outnumbered the Spartans ten to one, a vigilant Sparta was forced to keep its military always on the alert. Thus, Sparta created a rigid hierarchical society of well-trained, tough, and athletic men, women, and children. The Spartans also established a genuine oligarchy: a constitutional government operated by five officials elected annually by a small body of citizens. The ruling class, obsessed with keeping social order, passed laws forbidding immigration, limiting material possessions, and restricting creativity. Sparta was admired for its loyal, brave soldiers and its stable social order. But Sparta contributed little to the artistic enrichment of Greece.
According to paragraph 1, what was one weakness of Spartan civllization?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
AIt experienced too many rebellions.
BIt did not produce great works of art.
CIt did not have a fixed system of government.
DIt encouraged citizens to acquire many material possessions.
4
►The history of Athens echoes the general pattern of change in the Greek city-states during the Archaic Age. Aristocrats initially ruled Athens through councils and assemblies. As long as farming and trading sustained an expanding population, the nobles ruled without challenge. But at the beginning of the sixth century B.C., many peasant farmers were burdened with debts and were threatened with prison or slavery. Having no voice in the government, the farmers began to protest what they perceived as unfair laws.
Why does the author include the information that many peasant farmers were“burdened with debts” and“threatened with prison or slavery” at the beginning of the sixth century B.C.?
Rhetorical Purpose Questions修辞目的题
ATo identify some conditions that led farmers to rebel against the authority of the nobles
BTo provide evidence that trade became insufficient to support an expanding population
CTo support the claim that peasant farmers were given no voice in the government
DTo argue that laws passed by the councils and assemblies were harming the economy of Athens
5
►In about 590 B.C., the Athenians granted an aristocrat named Solon special powers to reform the economy. He abolished debts and guaranteed a free peasantry, overhauled the judicial system, and recorded the laws. Solon also restructured the Athenian constitution by giving the lower ranks of freemen, those without great name or noble family but with some property or wealth, the right to participate in government.
The word“overhauled” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Vocabulary Questions词汇题
Athoroughly changed
Bestablished
Cexpanded
Dre-evaluated
6.In about 590 B.C., the Athenians granted an aristocrat named Solon special powers to reform the economy. He abolished debts and guaranteed a free peasantry, overhauled the judicial system, and recorded the laws. Solon also restructured the Athenian constitution by giving the lower ranks of freemen, those without great name or noble family but with some property or wealth, the right to participate in government.
Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
Sentence Simplification Questions句子简化题
ASolon restructured the Athenian constitution by removing wealth and membership of a noble family as requirements for participation in government.
BSolon’s constitutional reforms gave free male property owners the right to participate in Athenian government.
CThe new Athenian constitution gave the lower ranks of freemen the right to join noble families.
DSolon’s constitutional reforms favored lower ranks of freemen with land and wealth over those without a great name or noble family.
7.Solon’s principal successor was Cleisthenes, who established democracy in Athens beginning in 508 B.C. He broadened the governmental base by opening it to all free male citizens (called the demos) regardless of their property or bloodlines. Cleisthenes’ democratic reforms, which lasted for almost two centuries, created an atmosphere in which civic pride and artistic energy were unleashed, inaugurating the Hellenistic age that made Athens both the pride and the envy of the other Greek city-states.
According to paragraph 5, which of the following is true of the democratic reforms of Cleisthenes?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
AThey reflected the influence of the Hellenistic age.
BThey overturned the economic reforms of Solon.
CThey resulted in increased civic pride and artistic creativity.
DThey allowed all freemen with property to participate in government.
8.For moderns, one of the most surprising contrasts between Sparta and Athens is the difference in the roles and status of women. In general, Spartan women spent their time outside and spoke freely to men; Athenian women were kept in seclusion and rarely talked with their husbands. Spartan women were made so independent because, above all else, they were expected to be strong mothers of the vigorous males needed to maintain this warrior society. To that end, Spartan women alone among Greek women were given public education, including choral singing and dancing, archery, and athletics. Spartan women were also unique in being able to own land and to manage their own property.
In contrast, the women of Athens pursued respectability as an ideal, which meant that they were supposed to marry and stay indoors, overseeing their households and performing domestic chores. It is not clear how strictly this ideal was imposed on them in daily life. Athenian drama contains many instances of female characters complaining about their powerlessness, as when a wife is abandoned (Euripides’ Medea) or a woman is left during wartime (Aeschylus’ Agamemnon). These examples probably reflected reality. Athenian women, lacking public education and excluded by law from government and the military, played a subordinate role to Athenian men.
Paragraphs 6 and 7 suggest which of the following about the roles of women in Sparta and Athens?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
AThe relative openness of Athenian society led to greater freedom for women in Athens.
BSpartan women used their political authority to demand that they be given public education.
CThe limits that Spartan society placed on women were less severe than those placed on women by Athenian society.
DAthenian women were not given public education because they were not expected to raise children to be warriors.
9.The history of Athens echoes the general pattern of change in the Greek city-states during the Archaic Age. Aristocrats initially ruled Athens through councils and assemblies. ⬛ As long as farming and trading sustained an expanding population, the nobles ruled without challenge. ⬛ But at the beginning of the sixth century B.C., many peasant farmers were burdened with debts and were threatened with prison or slavery. ⬛ Having no voice in the government, the farmers began to protest what they perceived as unfair laws. ⬛
Look at the four squaresthat indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage
This situation inevitably worsened, and they wanted to do something about it.
Insert Text Questions句子插入题
Where would the sentence best fit？Click on a square sentence to the passage.
10.
Sparta and Athens were two of the most prominent city-states of Greece during the Archaic Age.
Prose Summary Questions概要小结题
Select 3 answers
ABoth Athens and Sparta, though in different ways, made important contributions to Greek artistic and intellectual life.
BEven though Athens was initially ruled by the aristocracy, its political system evolved to a democratic system over time.
CAthenian women completely accepted their assigned social roles without complaint.
DSpartan society had a hierarchical structure with a small number of citizens making up the ruling class, which introduced policies that restricted behavior but ensured a stable society.
ESpartans and Athenians conquered and ruled over the original inhabitants of their locations and used their military might to prevent rebellion from the more populous conquered peoples.
FSpartan women had significantly more economic and political freedom than Athenian women had.
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