The rivalry between ancient Athens and Sparta is infamous—but they may have been more 'frenemies' Despite being rivals, many Athenians admired the government, clothing, and austerity of the ...

Liberation rhetoric and continuous warfare went hand-in-hand for Sparta, as it had for Athens, with dire consequences. Read More: The White House, Wonder Woman and What to Know About Thucydides.

Saul Bellow, in his “To Jerusalem and Back,” wrote approvingly of how Israel was so special a place because it sought simultaneously to be both Sparta and Athens — and largely succeeded at ...