Ancient Greece was a very civilized country for its time. Although the Greeks were warlike, social characteristics of their society made them almost as advanced as most present day societies. Although no official term existed for "homosexuality" in ancient Greece (E-Mail Trivia), it was a prevalent and accepted lifestyle.
             Homosexuality, or a relationship between two males, did not begin in ancient Greece; it has most likely existed since the first humans were on the earth. However, ancient Greek society was the first society where homosexuality was a common lifestyle. It was not as widely accepted as heterosexuality, but it was rarely looked down upon. Homosexuality was just another part of life for a great number of ancient Greek men (Love and Sex). Greece was not a place where homosexuals could live a perfect life. Helena Smith says in The Guardians, "Contrary to popular opinion that world [ancient Greece] was not a paradise for homosexuals" (Knitting Circle). There were accepted homosexuals, and there were those that were frowned upon by society. Greek society was militaristic, so heterosexual relations were important to the society for procreation. Without that, there would be no new soldiers. The men who led heterosexual lives and practiced homosexuality, also, were accepted. But, those men who were exclusively homosexual were looked down upon by society. Most men who practiced homosexuality also led heterosexual lives; therefore, homosexuality was widely accepted in ancient Greek society (Buchanan).
             It was extremely common for the upper-class Greek males to have a dominant type of sexual relationship with their slave boys. Their relationships were not hidden; moreover, most upper-class Greek men were "expected to desire insertive sex with young males..." (Knitting Circle). In most of these situations, these males were married and lead "normal" lives (Knitting Circle). Homosexual relations were also common am...