Plautus menaechmi facts
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For example, vineyard workers often worked in chain-gangs (Columella, a Roman who wrote agriculture guides, says this is because vineyard workers needed to be "Not only strong, but also clever"- an ambiguously desirable trait to an enslaver). Some slaves were physically bound while they worked. Others would never interact with their enslavers, and were highly unlikely to ever be manumitted. Personal familiarity with their enslavers greatly increased the chance that they would be manumitted or otherwise get preferential treatment. Some slaves served in roles that placed them in close proximity to their enslavers, like nursemaids. Others served in safer positions that did not pose health risks. Some slaves served in unhealthy or dangerous conditions, like gladiators or dung-collectors. Others performed unskilled labor, and were easy to replace. Some slaves had highly specialized skills, like doctors, making them more expensive and less replaceable. Others served in less strenuous roles, like secretarial work. This could take a severe toll on your body over time. Some slaves served in physically strenuous roles, like miners. Here are a few of the dimensions on which Roman slaves' roles differed: It's useful to think of "slave" as a Roman legal status, rather than a single social role or form of forced labor. Roman slavery took a near-infinite variety of forms. What could a Roman slave be doing instead of milling?
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To understand why, we should start by looking at the alternatives. But in the context of Roman slavery milling was one of the most feared, low-status duties available. Medieval millers were quite high-status, typically among the wealthiest (and most resented) members of their village. Milling isn't an inherently low-status job. This is how Apuleius introduces us to the workers at a Roman bakery in his novel The Golden Ass. They resembled boxers who coat themselves with dust when they fight, for their bodies were a dirty white from the oven-baked flour." Their faces were a ghastly yellow, and their eyes had contracted in the smoke-filled gloom of that steaming, dank atmosphere, making them half-blind. They had letters branded on their foreheads, half-shaved heads, and chains round their ankles.
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Their backs, which bore the marks of the whip, were not so much covered as shaded by torn shirts of patchwork cloth. "Great heavens, what poor specimens of humanity the men were! Their entire bodies formed a pattern of livid bruises. Previous AMAs | Previous Roundtables Featuresįeature posts are posted weekly. Please Subscribe to our Google Calendar for Upcoming AMAs and Events To nominate someone else as a Quality Contributor, message the mods. Our flaired users have detailed knowledge of their historical specialty and a proven record of excellent contributions to /r/AskHistorians.
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