Spartans! The movie?

Right on time, Hollywood has produced an action-packed thrillride of a feature film about the Spartans.

Ok, so it's not about our Spartans, but the timing is uncanny. When was the last time you saw a movie about the hardest-core warrior society of the ancient world? And when was the last time Bainbride High's high-flying hoopsters were a hair's breath from taking a State Title? Here it is, a cosmic overlap of (Greek) mythic proportions.

I don't know how much islanders truly appreciate what it is to be a "Spartan." Honestly, I don't understand why the island of olden days would pick such a mascot.
For those not in the know, the movie "300" about a group of Spartan soldiers pulling an Alamo at mountain pass against the Persian invaders, should give Bainbridgers a hint at what it means to be Spartan.

But for a little, more history, check this out:

Sparta was, above all, a militarist state, and emphasis on military fitness began virtually at birth, according to Wikipedia. Shortly after birth, the mother of the child bathed it in wine to see whether the child was strong. If the child survived it was brought before the elders of the tribe by the child's father. The elders then decided whether it was to be reared or not.

If found defective or weak, the baby was left on the wild slopes of Mt Taygetos. In this way the Spartans attempted the maintenance of high physical standards in their population.

It was customary in Sparta that before the males would go off to war, their wives...would present them with their shield and say: "With this, or upon this." The idea was that a Spartan could only return to Sparta in one of two ways, victorious or dead.

If a Spartan hoplite were to return to Sparta alive and without his shield, it was assumed that he threw his shield at the enemy in an effort to flee; an act punishable by death or banishment.


A strong emphasis was placed on honour and carrying out acts because it was the 'right thing to do.' Xenophon wrote about the Spartans as he observed them during an Olympic game:

"An elderly man was trying to find a place to sit and observe the Olympic Games, as he went to each section. All the other Greeks laughed as he tried to make his way through. Some ignored him. Upon entering the Spartan section all the Spartans stood and offered the elderly man their seats. Suddenly the entire stadium applauded. All the Greeks knew what was the right thing to do, but the Spartans were the only ones who did it."

Perhaps our Spartans can await such honors when they return to Bainbridge with their shields rather than upon them.