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Slavery in Ancient Greece

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Slavery was an essential component throughout the development of Ancient Greece. Most of the ancients considered it not only essential, but quite natural: neither the Stoics nor Early Christians called the practice into question. Notwithstanding this, as early as the 4th century BCE, some isolated debate begins to appear (notably Plato - see below).

Conforming to modern historiographical practice, this article will discuss only chattel slavery—not dependent groups of Ancient Greece such as the Penestai of Thessaly, the Spartan Helots or the Clarotes of Crete; complex statuses more closely related to Mediaeval serfdom. The slave is an individual deprived of liberty and forced to submit to a proprietor who may buy, sell, or lease them as any chattel good.

The study of slavery in Ancient Greece poses a number of significant methodological problems. Documentation is disparate and very fragmented, concentrating on the city of Athens. There is no treatise devoted specifically to the subject. Judicial activities of the 4th century BCE were interested in slavery only insofar as a source of revenue.

In the arts, comedy represented slaves of comedy; Greek tragedy the slaves of tragedy. In iconography or on steles, it is difficult to differentiate a slave from an artisan with certainty. Even the terminology is often vague (see below).

Contents

Terminology

The Ancient Greeks had many words to describe slaves, though many need to be placed in proper context to avoid ambiguity. In the language of Homer, the slave was called δμώς / dmôs. In a military context, the term indicates "prisoner" in the context of booty or plunder; in other words, property. During the classical period, they used ἀνδράποδον / andrápodon (literally "one with the feet of a man", as opposed to τετράποδον / tetrapodon, the quadruped, or livestock). The most common word is undoubtedly δοῦλος / doûlos (an earlier form of which appears in Mycenaean inscriptions as do-e-roMycenean transliterations can be confusing and do not directly reflect pronunciation; for clarification see Linear B), used in opposition to free man (ἐλεύθερος / eleútheros); it can be used metaphorically for other forms of dominion, as of one city over another, or parents over their children. [definition] from LSJ. There are also instances in which the Greeks saw a spectrum from slavery to citizenship, the highest legitimate right.For these see especially Marie-Madeleine Mactoux: Douleia: Esclavage et Practiques discursives dans l'Athènes classique. (Paris, 1980) Finally, the term οἰκέτης / oikétês was used; meaning literally, "he who lives in the home", or, by extension "domestic".

Other terms used where less precise and required context:

Origins of Slavery

The presence of slaves is confirmed in the Mycenaean civilisation. According to tablets from Pylos, 140 do-e-ro can be identified with certainty. It is possible to distinguish two legal categories: "common" slaves, and "slaves of god" (te-o-jo do-e-ro i.e. θεοιο), the god in this case probably being Poseidon. Based on the ethnicity of their names, some of them came from Kythera, Chios, Lemnos or even Halicarnassus), and were probably enslaved as a result of piracy. The tablets indicate that unions between slaves and non-slaves were not uncommon, that slaves could be independent artisans, and that they could even retain plots of land. In fact, it appears that the major division in Mycenaean civilisation was not whether one was free or enslaved, but whether one was a dependent of the palace or not.

In the time of Homer when social structures reflected those of the Greek dark ages, there is no continuity with the Mycenaean era. There was even a different terminology; however, Homer is written in a different dialect - or rather combination of dialects - than were the Mycenaean tablets, which may account for this. The slave is no longer do-e-ro (doulos), but dmôs. In the Iliad, as well as the Odyssey slaves are above all women taken as booty of war, while men were either ransomed or killed on the field of battle. These women were servants and sometimes concubines. There were some male slaves, above all in the Odyssey: a prime example being the swineherd Eumaeus. The slave was distinctive in being a member of the core part of the oikos (family unit, household). The term dmôs is not considered pejorative and Eumaeus, the "divine" swineherd benefits from the same Homeric praise as the Greek heroes. In spite of this, slavery remains a disgrace. Eumaeus himself declares that, "Nay, thralls are no more inclined to honest service when their masters have lost the dominion, for Zeus, of the far-borne voice, takes away the half of a man's virtue, when the day of slavery comes upon him." XVII, 322–323. Online version of Butcher-Lang 1879 translation, http://www.robotwisdom.com/jaj/homer/odyssey.html

During this period it is difficult to determine when slave trading commenced. In "Works and Days" of the 8th century BCE, it is apparent that Hesiod owns numerous dmôes, although their status is unclear. The presence of douloi is confirmed by lyric poets such as Archilochus or Theognis of Megara. According to tradition the homicide law of Draco of 620 BCE mentioned slaves. According to Plutarch in his "Life of Solon", I,6, Solon around 594-593 BCE forbade slaves from practising gymnastics and pederasty. By the end of this era references become more common. It is at the moment that Solon establishes the basis for Athenian democracy that slavery is made indispensable. Moses Finley likewise remarks at Chios which according to Theopompus was the first city to have a slave trade, the 6th century BCE also saw an early democratization. And, he concludes "one of the aspects of Greek history is, in short, the advance, hand-in-hand of liberty and slavery." M. I. Finley, "Was the Greek civilization founded on slavery?", Economy and Society in Ancient Greece, pp. 170–171.

Economic role

Properly speaking there was no such thing as a servile act. All acts were open to being carried out by a slave with the exception of politics, the only activity over which citizens had a monopoly. Moreover for the Greeks, politics was the only activity deserving of the dignity of a citizen; the rest having been abandoned where ever possible to non-citizens. It was status that was of importance, not activity.

The principal activity using slaves was agriculture, the foundation of the Greek economy. There is an abundant literature of manuals for landowners . In short, a slave could carry practically any name, but barbarian names could only be given to slaves. Cf. O. Masson, "Slave Names in Greek Antiquity", Procedures of the 1971 Colloquium on Slavery, p. 9—21.. Finally, the nationality of a slave was a significant criterion for major purchasers; the ancient advice was not to concentrate too many slaves of the same origin in the same place, in order to limit the risk of revolt. It is also probable that, as with the Romans, certain nationalities were considered more productive as slaves than others.

The price of slaves varied in accordance with their ability. Xenophon valued a Laurion miner at 180 drachmas; in comparison a free laborer average wage was one drachma per day in the 5th century BCE. Demosthenes' father's cutlers were valued at 500 to 600 drachmas each. Price was also a function of the quantity of slaves available: in the 4th century BCE they were abundant and it was thus a buyer's market.

Natural growth

Curiously, it appears that the Greeks did not 'breed' their slaves. Sometimes the cause of this is natural: mines, for instance, were exclusively a male domain. On the other hand, there were many female domestic slaves. The example of blacks in the American south on the other hand demonstrates that slave populations did multiply. This incongruity remains relatively unexplained. Xenophon advised that male and female slaves should be lodged separately, that "…nor children born and bred by our domestics without our knowledge and consent–no unimportant matter, since, if the act of rearing children tends to make good servants still more loyally disposed, cohabiting but sharpens ingenuity for mischief in the bad."The Economist, IX; trans H. G. Dakyns from 

http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext98/econm10.txt accessed 16 May 06 More simply, the explanation is no doubt economic: it is cheaper to purchase a slave than to raise one. Additionally, child birth placed the slave-mother's life at risk, and the baby was not guaranteed to survive to adulthood.
Slaves born at the master's home, as minors, often constituted a privileged class. They were, for example, entrusted to take the children to school: they were the "pedagogues" in the first sense of the term. (cf. Education in Ancient Greece).

Status of Slaves

The Greeks had not one but many degrees of enslavement. More precisely, there was a multitude ranging from free citizen to chattel slave, and including serfs (Penestai or Helots), disenfranchised citizens, the emancipated, bastards, and Metics.

Despite the strict meaning of the ancient word slave-doulos, which is translated as a person whith no voting rights and as a person who cannot equaly participate to decisions, Moses Finley (who died June 23 1986) proposed-invented in 1997 a new set of criteria, in order to define different degrees of enslavement. Unfortunately Moses excluded the obvious, the voting rights criterion, for obvious reasons:

Athenian Slaves

Although many sources presented into the article refer striclty to Athenian Slaves, only this small paragraph is dedicated to them. The rest of the sources are dispersed, so it is recommended to read the whole article. 

In Athens slaves had no judicial rights. A misdemeanour that would result in a fine for the free would result in a flogging for the slave; the ratio seems to have been one lash for one drachma.  With several minor exceptions, the testimony of a slave was not acceptable except under torture. The slave himself was not protected: if mistreated the master could initiate litigation for damages and interest (δίκη βλάβης / dikê blabês). Conversely, a master who excessively mistreated a slave could be prosecuted by any citizen (γραφὴ ὕβρεως / graphê hybreôs; this was not enacted for the sake of the slave, but to avoid violent excess.(ὕβρις / hubris). It was the same for the murder of a slave. It was the pollution of the shedding of blood that was the evil here; as such the suspect was judged by the Palladion  (a court reserved for unintentional homicide cases), rather than the Areopagus, and the maximum punishment was exile, as for involuntary manslaughter.



Slaves in Gortyn


In Gortyn, according to a code engraved in stone dating to the 6th century BCE slaves (doulos or oikeus) found themselves in a state of great dependence. Their children belonged to the master. He was also responsible for all their offences and inversely he received amends for crimes committed against his slaves by others. In the Gortyn code where all punishment was monetary, fines for slaves were doubled when they committed a misdemeanour or felony. Conversely, an offence committed against a slave was much less expensive than offences committed against the free. As an example the rape of a free woman by a slave was punishable by a fine of 200 staters, while the rape of a non-virgin slave by another slave brought a fine of only one obolus. 


Nevertheless, slaves did have the right to possess a home and livestock which could be transmitted to descendants, as could clothing and household objects.



A specific case: slavery for debt


Prior to its interdiction by Solon, Athenians practised enslavement for debt: a citizen incapable of paying his debts became enslaved to the creditor. This primarily concerned those peasants known as  "hectemores", working leased land belonging to rich landowners, and unable to pay their rents. In theory, those so enslaved would be liberated when their original debts were repaid. The system was developed with variants throughout the Near East, and is cited in the Bible (Deuteronomy, 15:12–17), apparently having been formalised in Athens by Draco.


Solon put an end to it with the σεισάχθεια / seisakhtheia, liberation of debts, which prevented all claim to the person by the debtor and forbade the sale of free Athenians, including by themselves. Aristotle quotes Solon thus (Constitution of the Athenians XII, 4):

And many a man whom fraud or law had sold
For from his god-built land, an outcast slave,
I brought again to Athens; yea, and some,
Exiles from home through debt’s oppressive load,
Speaking no more the dear Athenian tongue,
But wandering far and wide, I brought again;
And those that here in vilest slavery
Crouched ‘neath a master’s frown, I set them free.


Chap XII, trans. Kenyon, Sir Frederic, http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/a/aristotle/athenian/ Accessed 15 May 06



Much as the vocabulary used is that of 'traditional' slavery, servitude for debt was somewhat different in that the enslaved Athenian remained an Athenian, dependant on another Athenian, in his place of birth.  It is this aspect which explains the great wave of discontent with slavery of the 6th century BCE, which was not intended to free all slaves; but only those enslaved by debt.  The reforms of Solon did however leave one exception: the guardian of an unmarried woman who had lost her virginity had the right to sell her as a slave Extract from the G. Mathieu and B. Haussoulier translation reviewed by Claude Mossé in Belles Lettres, 1985..



Emancipation


The practice of emancipation is confirmed to have existed in Chios from the 6th century BCE. It probably dates back to an earlier period, as it was an oral procedure. Informal emancipations are also confirmed in the classical period. It was sufficient to have witnesses who would escort the citizen to emancipate their slave publicly, either at the theater or before public tribunal. This practice was outlawed in Athens in the middle of the 6th century BCE, in order to avoid public disorder. 


The practice became more common in the 4th century BCE and lead to inscriptions in stone which have been recovered from sanctuaries such as Delphi and Dodona. They primarily date to the 2nd and 1st century BCE, and the 1st century CE. According to this documentation emancipation appeared to be a voluntary act on the part of the master (predominantly male, but from the Hellenistic period also female). The slave was often required to pay for himself for an amount at least equivalent to his street value. To do this he could either use his savings, take a loan from a friend (ἔρανος / eranos), or from his master. The emancipation was often of a religious nature: where the slave was considered to be "sold" to a deity (often Apollo), or consecrated after his emancipation. The temple would receive a portion of the monetary transaction and guarantee the contract. The emancipation could also be entirely civil in which case the magistrate played the role of the deity.   


The slave's freedom could be either total or partial, at the master's whim. In the former, the emancipated slave was legally protected against all attempts at re-enslavement, for instance on the part of the former master's inheritors. In the later case, the emancipated slave could be liable to a number of obligations to the former master. The most restrictive contract was the paramone, a type of enslavement of limited duration during which time the master retained practically absolute rights.  


In regards to the city, the emancipated slave was far from equal to a citizen of birth. He was liable to all types of obligations, as one can see from the proposals of Plato in The Laws (XI, 915 a–c): presentation three times monthly at the home of the former master, forbidden to become richer than him, etc. In fact, the status of an emancipated slave was similar to that of a Metic.



Slavery conditions





It is difficult to appreciate the condition of Greek slaves. According to pseudo-Aristotle (Economics, 1344a35), the daily routine of slaves could be summed up in three words: "work, discipline, and feeding". Xenophon's advice is to treat slaves as domestic animals, that is to say punish disobedience and reward good behaviour (Economics, XIII, 6). For his part, Aristotle prefers to see slaves treated as children, and to use not only orders, but also recommendations, as the slave is capable of understanding reasons when they are explained (Politics, I, 3, 14).


Greek literature abounds with scenes of slaves being flogged: it was a means of forcing work, as was control of rations, clothing, and rest.  This violence could be meted out by the master as well as the supervisor; who was possibly also a slave. Thus, at the beginning of Aristophanes' The Knights, two slaves complain of being "bruised and thrashed without respite" S. B. Pomeroy, Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves, Schoken, 1995, p. 57. by their new supervisor. However, Aristophanes himself cites what is a typical old saw in Ancient Greek comedy (Peace, v. 743–749):


"He also dismissed those slaves who kept on running off, or deceiving someone,
or getting whipped. They were always led out crying, so one of their fellow slaves could mock the bruises and ask then: 'Oh you poor miserable fellow, what's happened to your skin?  Surely a huge army of lashes from a whip has fallen down on you and laid waste your back?'" trans Ian Johnston, 2006.  http://www.mala.bc.ca/~Johnstoi/aristophanes/peace.htm accessed 17 May 06  


In fact, the condition of slaves varied very much according to their status: the mine slave of Laurion lived a particularly brutal existence, while city slaves enjoyed relative independence. In return for a fee (ἀποφορά / apophora) paid to their master, they could live and work alone. They could thus earn some money on the side; sometimes enough to purchase their freedom. Potential emancipation was in effect a powerful motivator, though the real scale of this is difficult to estimate. Pseudo-Xenophon goes so far as to deplore the liberties taken by Athenian slaves: "as fo the slaves and Metics of Athens, they take the greatest licence; you cannot just strike them, an they do not step aside to give you free passage" (Constitution of the Athenians, I, 10).


This alleged good treatment did not prevent 20,000 Athenian slaves from running away at the end of the Peloponnesian War, on the incitement of the Spartan garrison at Attica in Decelea. And these were principally skilled artisans and tradespersons, probably amongst the better-treated slaves. Conversely, the absence of a large-scale Greek slave revolt, comparable to that of Spartacus in Rome for instance, can undoubtedly be explained by the relative dispersion of Greek slaves, which would have prevented any large-scale planning. It should be noted though that slave revolts were rare, even in Rome or the Confederate States of AmericaOn that subject, see Paul Cartledge, "Rebels and Sambos in Classical Greece", Spartan Reflections, University of California Press (2003), p.127-152..



Views of Greek slavery


Historical views






No author of antiquity calls the existence of slavery into question; at most they admit that certain slaves may have been unjustly enslaved. To Homer and the pre-classical authors, slavery was an inevitable consequence of war. Heraclitus states: "War is the father of all, the king of all...he turns some into slaves and sets others free" (fragment 53).


During the classical period, the idea of "natural" slavery emerged; thus, as Aeschylus states in The Persians, the Greeks "[o]f no man are they called the slaves or vassalsThe Persians, v. 242. trans. ed. Herbert Weir Smyth, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Aesch.+Pers.+1 accessed 17 May 2006 ,".  while the Persians, as Euripides states in (Helen, (v. 276) "are all slaves, except one" — the grand king. Hippocrates theorizes about this latent idea at the end of the 5th century BCE: according to him, the temperate climate of Anatolia produced a placid and submissive people. This explanation is reprised by Aristotle in Politics, where he develops the concept of "natural slavery": "for he that can foresee with his mind is naturally ruler and naturally master, and he that can do these things with his body is subject and naturally a slave." Politics. trans. H. Rackham http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0058&query=book%3D%231 accessed 17 May 2006 (I,2,2) As opposed to animals, slaves can comprehend reason but "... has not got the deliberative part at all  (I, 13, 17)". Plato, himself reduced to slavery until emancipated by one of his friends, unusually provides an explicit condemnation of slavery in Menon by involving a slave in a philosophical discussion. Through this the slave's status as a human being in full measure is acknowledged, negating the fundamental basis of slavery. 


In parallel, the concept that all men, whether Greek or barbarian, belonged to the same race was being developed by the Sophists; and thus that certain men were slaves although they had the soul of a freeman and vice versa. Aristotle himself recognized this possibility (Politics, I, 5, 10) and argued that slavery could not be imposed if the master was better than the slave thereby proving the concept of "natural" slavery. The sophists concluded that true servitude was not a matter of status but a matter of spirit; thus, as Menander stated, "be free in the mind, although you are slave: and thus you will no longer be a slave" (fragment 857). This idea repeated by the Stoics and the Epicurians, was not so much an opposition to slavery as trivializing it. 


Even in utopia, the Greeks could not comprehend an absence of slaves. The "ideal cities" of the Laws and the Republic assumed their existence, as did the 
"[[wiktionary:Cloudcuckooland|Cloudcuckooland]]" of Artistophanes' The Birds. The "reversed cities" placed women in power or even saw the end of private property (Lysistrata, Assemblywomen) but could not picture slaves in charge of masters. The only societies without slaves were those of the Golden age, where all needs were met. In this type of society, as explained by Plato (Politics, 271a–272b), one reaped generously without sowing. In Telekleides'  Amphictyons, (cited by Athenaeus, 268 b–d) barley loaves fight with wheat loaves for the honour of being eaten by men. Moreover objects move themselves; dough kneads itself, and the carafe pours itself. Society without slaves is thus relegated to a different time and space. In a "normal" society one needs slaves.



Modern views






Slavery in Greek antiquity has long been an object of apologetic discourse among Christians, who awarded themselves the merit of its collapse. From the 16th century the discourse became moralizing in nature: the existence of colonial slavery had significant impact on the debate, with some authors lending it civilizing merits while others denouncing its misdeeds. Thus Henri Wallon in 1847 published a History of Slavery in Antiquity amongst his works for the abolition of slavery in the French colonies. 


In the 19th century a politico-economic discourse emerged. It concerned itself with distinguishing the phases in the organization of human societies, and correctly identifying the place of Greek slavery. The influence of Marx is decisive: for him the ancient society was characterized by development of private ownership and the dominant (and not secondary as in other pre-capitalist societies) character of slavery as a mode of production. The positivists represented by the historian Eduard Meyer (Slavery in Antiquity, 1898) were soon to oppose the Marxist theory: according to him slavery was the foundation of Greek democracy. It was thus a legal and social phenomena, and not economic. Historiography developed thought the 20th century; led by authors such as Joseph Vogt, it saw in slavery the conditions for the development of elites. Conversely the theory also demonstrates an opportunity for slaves to join the elite. Finally, he estimates that modern society, founded on humanist values, has surpassed this level of development.  


Currently, Greek slavery remains the subject of historiographical debate; on two questions in particular. Can it be said that ancient Greece was a "slave state"? Did Greek slaves comprise a social class?



See also





Notes








References



Bibliography




  • P. Brûlé et J. Oulhen (dir.), Esclavage, guerre, économie en Grèce ancienne. Hommages à Yvon Garlan, Presses universitaires de Rennes, "History" collection, 1997. ISBN 2868472893
  • Moses Finley :
  • * The Ancient Economy, University of California Press, 1999 (1st edn. 1970) ISBN 0520219465
  • * Ancient Slavery & Modern Ideology, Markus Wiener, 1998 (1st edn. 1980) ISBN 1558761713
  • * Slavery in Classical Antiquity. Views and Controversies, Heffer, Cambridge, 1960
  • Yvon Garlan, Slavery in Ancient Greece, Cornell Univ Press, 1988 (1st edn. 1982) ISBN 0801418410
  • Peter Garnsey, Ideas of Slavery from Aristotle to Augustine, Cambridge University Press, 1996. ISBN 0521574331
  • Pierre Vidal-Naquet ;
  • * "Women, Slaves and Artisans", third part of The Black Hunter : Forms of Thought and Forms of Society in the Greek World, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1988 (1st edn. 1981). ISBN 0801859514
  • * with Jean-Pierre Vernant, Travail et esclavage en Grèce ancienne, Complexe, "History" collection, Bruxelles, 2006 (1st edn. 1988). ISBN 2870272464
  • Thomas Wiedemann, Greek and Roman Slavery, Routledge, London, 1989 (1st edn. 1981). ISBN 0415029724



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