Spartan Delusions: This... Is... Trauma Part: 1

In this episode, we dismantle the glorified myths of Spartan society, revealing the brutal realities behind the legend. From the harrowing experiences of the agoge—Sparta's rigorous education and training system—to the oppressive treatment of the helots, we explore how a society built on discipline and warfare concealed a foundation of systemic violence and control. Through historical accounts and critical analysis, we uncover the psychological and physical toll exacted on individuals in the name of state supremacy.

https://www.voicy.network/sounds/6Ggt2XqHyES7D_sfoieZsA-this-is-sparta

https://www.hellenic-art.com/hellenipedia/spartan-art-of-war/

Primary Ancient Sources:

• Plutarch. Life of Lycurgus. Translated by Bernadotte Perrin, Harvard University Press, 1914. https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Lycurgus*.htmlPenelope+1Penelope+1

• Plutarch. Moralia: Ancient Customs of the Spartans. Translated by Frank Cole Babbitt, Harvard University Press, 1931. https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Moralia/Instituta_Laconica*.htmlPenelope

• Herodotus. The Histories. Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt, Penguin Classics, 1954.

• Xenophon. Constitution of the Lacedaemonians. Translated by E.C. Marchant, Harvard University Press, 1925.Reddit

Secondary Sources:

• Cartledge, Paul. The Spartans: The World of the Warrior-Heroes of Ancient Greece. Vintage, 2004.Ancient Origins+1Penelope+1

• Hodkinson, Stephen. "Sparta and the Crisis of the Peloponnesian League." The Classical Quarterly, vol. 48, no. 2, 1998, pp. 378–391.

• Luraghi, Nino. "The Imaginary Conquest of the Helots." Center for Hellenic Studies, Harvard University, https://chs.harvard.edu/chapter/part-ii-ideologies-chapter-5-nino-luraghi-the-imaginary-conquest-of-the-helots/.The Center for Hellenic Studies

• "Agoge, the Spartan Education Program." World History Encyclopedia, https://www.worldhistory.org/article/342/agoge-the-spartan-education-program/.World History Encyclopedia

• "Helots." Wiki