Athens and Sparta definitely varied when it came to the way both cities were ruled and the way the two different peoples lived and were treated. Athens' government was mostly based on the equality of all people, and everyone was treated equally and ruled by a democracy. In Sparta the government was completely different. Sparta was set up like a military camp and the people in Sparta were treated more like warriors than citizens. From this information alone, it definitely sounds as though Athens would be the favorable place of residence. But that is not exactly so, I believe that the Spartan's way of life was much more desirable because, it was stronger and more powerful, girls were treated better, and the way of life was overall better for individuals.
             The Athenians value of the arts was a huge contrast from the Spartans value of the military strength of their state. Now say you were looking around for a place to live, and you're there looking in the back of your local newspaper and you read "Move to Athens- where were working to produce a strong appreciation for the arts." And so you turn the page and see, " Sparta- working to build and maintain a strong military to protect our city." What are you going to think? "Ooh the arts, that sounds nice." Or "Wow, the protection of a strong military, pretty important." Personally I think that Spartan life sounds much more appealing because of that fact that if I lived there, I could be assured protection because of how life is based there and because of how strict Spartan lifestyle is. It would be much more assuring to live in a place where we could be protected during a time when there are so many revolts and rivalries between states than live in a place whose main focus is the arts. Because of the Spartan military being so strong, Sparta was a very powerful city because of it's military, which makes living there even more appeal...