Sparta...was Sorta Progressive(?)

Sparta...was sorta progressive(?)

I continue my dive into the rabbit hole of Ares affection. Now, it landed on Sparta. I find it ironic that Ares is disliked so much. When you see Sparta represented in most media, it's horrific. It's where people go to be slaughtered and it probably was for some. I'm not challenging that, but there's more.

Sparta was one of the few cities where women could own their own land, go around the city, talk with others, etc. They even competed in sports. It was to the point where other Greeks looked down on Spartan women because that seemed too "improper" compared to the other groups who'd just stay silently inside their homes. They could dress more like how they wanted, a Spartan woman was the first woman to win gold in the Olympics, and there was even formal education allowed which taught them common subjects as well as about war. On top of this, let's talk about marriage. The age for that was 18 and 20 fof women and men, respectively, in a time when girls could get married off at 14 to men twice their age. I also think it's no small point that Ares is one of the few gods who I haven't found any assault incidents on.

But then, I am reminded of the time period and how something as simple as a woman showing ankle could be considered savage in some places. So, it's all starting to make more sense how the immortal associated with such a place of "debauchery" would be considered savage as well.

So, long story short, I wish more Spartans joined the "writing Greek mythology" party because I would love to see some old tales about Ares being a pretty cool guy.