Look! Look! I wrote a thing!

Ladies and gents, I present...

My first and second paragraphs!

(Yeah okay the first one was already written but I edited it so I'm posting it again.)

Ta da! :D

[EDIT: I ADDED A SENTENCE IN THE SECOND PARAGRAPH.]

Paragraph One: Describe the ideal of female beauty in Greece and Sparta. (500 words allotted - 426 words used).

Between the near antithetical cultures observed by the Spartans and all other Greek poli, the ultimate paradigms of female beauty differed greatly. In spite of the general condemnation of the way in which Spartan women conducted themselves, they were famed for their beauty. Homer referred to Sparta as, “kallignyaika”, “the land of beautiful women”; it was common knowledge also that, “the face that launched a thousand ships”, belonged to Helen of Troy, or, more accurately, Helen of Sparta. These endorsements clearly show the admiration of the other poli, but it is important to note that the Spartans themselves, though still reverent of beauty, were practical rather than romantic in their ideals. The Spartan perception of female beauty centred on the physical manifestation of athleticism and fitness, and not on the artificial enhancement or subjugation of women, as seen in other parts of Greece; and although the Spartans were fixated on physical prowess to the point of narcissism, they were not inclined to material vanity, as evidenced by the rulings of Lycurgus, which forbade the use of cosmetics. Even coiffure was not a matter of beauty in Sparta; women wore their hair either long or short and were unconcerned with the elaborate braids and twists that were favoured by other women. The other Greek poli, however, had very different standards of female beauty to Sparta; in spite of the open admiration with which the rest of Greece observed the Spartan women, when they were not participating in politics, sport, or any other activity in which they opposed men or demonstrated their capacity for free thought that is, the other poli preferred women who showed little evidence of physical exertion and much evidence of oppressive misogyny. Women were expected to wear a long, sleeveless article called the chiton that fell to the ankles and concealed the legs, in contrast with the Spartans, who wore short, practical skirts. Pale, delicate skin was also a particular mark of beauty in a female, and women frequently used cosmetics, including white lead, which was very toxic, and chalk, to lighten their skin. Other facial beautifications went in and out of mode throughout the period; connected eyebrows were considered highly fashionable at one stage and powders were used for various things, including the darkening of the eyelid and the rouging of the cheeks. Greek women generally wore jewellery as well, though the Spartans wore little if any. It is evident, then, that there are substantial differences between the epitomes of beauty that were upheld by the Spartans and all the other Greek poli.

Paragraph Two: Explore the social reasons behind those ideals. (500 words allotted - 583 used).

The conflicting archetypes of beauty, as observed by Sparta and the other Greek poli, were undoubtedly the result of differing socio-cultural structures. The athleticism of women that was uniquely encouraged in Sparta was due to its totalitarian militaristic society; as the life of every male citizen was wholly devoted to military action, the Spartans valued strength in men to the point where it was common practice to commit infanticide if a male infant was deemed to be too weak to make a good soldier. The Spartans believed that only a strong mother could bear a strong son, and so women in Sparta were required to be fit and athletic. This dictate was enforced in a similar, if less murderous and more reasonable, manner to that imposed on males; at the age of eighteen, girls were required to undergo a compulsory test of fitness and skills, and if they passed, they would be found husbands and allowed to return home, but if they failed, they would, “lose [their] rights as a citizen”, and become perioikos. Therefore, Spartan girls all received a public education wherein they were required to actively participate in sports such as wrestling (which they famously engaged in whilst naked) running, discus, and javelin, in addition to their cerebral endeavours. and javelin, in addition to their cerebral endeavours. Spartan women were well-nourished, unlike the women of other poli, who were, “regularly given less food than men”. The simplicity of the Spartans’ hairstyles is another result of the Spartan military system, specifically their practice of mentorship through compulsory pederasty. At the age of nine, boys were given a mentor, generally a man in his thirties or thereabouts, to whom the entirety of their education, outside of what the public system provided, was entrusted; this included their sexual education. By the time Spartan men were married, they were unused to female lovers. To solve this problem, a Spartan girl would be made as boyish as possible in preparation for her marriage; her hair would be cut short and she would be dressed in boys’ tunic for the wedding night. Because of this, short hair denoted a married woman and long hair an unmarried one. In other Greek poli, the standards of female beauty were based on an almost entirely different set of societal conventions and restrictions, the only point of commonality between them being the women’s fundamental reproductive function. Despite this, other poli did not share Sparta’s belief in the importance of female strength and fitness, and, thus, valued the hallmarks of privilege and inactivity. Pale skin was considered beautiful because it alluded to wealth; aristoi women rarely ventured out in public, except for the purposes of observing religious festivals and the like, and were, therefore, fairer than their working compatriots. Likewise, fragility and slenderness of form was encouraged as it indicated that a woman was not required to perform manual labour, which was the activity of slaves or helots. As in Sparta, certain hairstyles signified the marital status of the wearer; unmarried women wore their hair loose, but married women conventionally wore elaborate braids and hairpieces. The, “imposition of headgear…and other trappings”, was considered a necessity in order to bind and regulate women, who were thought to be, “pollutable, polluted, and polluting in several ways at once”, owing to their being, “as individuals”, “formless”, and, “without firm control of personal boundaries”. Ergo, it is apparent that the divergence of the paradigms of female beauty adhered to by Sparta and the other Greek poli was the consequence of their distinct socio-cultural differences.

Footnotes shall be added tomorrow.