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 me

Contrary to popular belief, scholars have proven that Greece was not a homosexual paradise (People With a History). But, homosexuality is still a characteristic of ancient Greek society. Although men who were solely homosexual were not accepted in Greek society, men who lead heterosexual lives and practiced homosexuality were widely accepted. Homosexuality was widespread in the Greek military system and the Greek educational system. The practice was also common in Olympic training. Furthermore, homosexuality was thought to strengthen these three institutions. Today's knowledge of prevalent homosexuality in ancient Greece is based on ancient Greek literature. Ancient Greece was a uniquely open minded country; it had the ingenuity to reform lives for the good of its society.

Education was also an important part of ancient Greek society. The state took the greatest amount of responsibility for the child. Girls were excluded from the educational system that was designed to teach boys how to be men. Just as in Olympic training, the student was expected to respect and admire his teacher; in return, the teacher was expected to gain the devotion of his student. Again, a homosexual relationship was considered beneficial in this process (Buchanan).

It was extremely common for the upper class Greek males to have a dominant type of sexual relationship with their slave boys.

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