by Jerry Toner
‘Oh, come on!’ he said, ‘Do you think that everyone who is being held in slavery is a real slave? There are plenty of free men who are being held unjustly as slaves. You often see them appealing in the law courts and producing evidence to prove that they are free. Tens of thousands of people have suffered this misfortune. And when a free Athenian is taken prisoner in war and is shipped off to Persia or Sicily and sold there, we don’t say that he is now a slave. We say he is still, in truth, free. But if a Persian or Sicilian is brought here we certainly don’t say that he is still free.’
So the citizen said that it was the way in which he was treated that made him a slave. But the slave was too clever for that.
‘So what,’ he said, ‘if I am fed by my master, do what he says, and get punished if I don’t – that would make his sons his slaves too. They have to do whatever their father tells them and are beaten if they don’t.’
He added that it would also make schoolboys the slaves of their teachers. The free man countered that teachers and fathers don’t chain up their sons and pupils, or sell them or send them to work in the treadmill. Only masters do that to slaves. But the slave replied that there are many places where fathers do behave like that towards their sons. He himself knew several people who had sold children into slavery because they needed the money. But that did not make their remaining sons slaves.
The point the slave was making was that no matter how obvious it might seem that slaves are naturally servile and worthless, it is possible for them to become free and for their children to be as free as anyone. And in the same way, if a free man suffers the misfortune of being captured and sold off as a slave then he is to all intents and purposes a slave and cannot be distinguished from any other slave. There is nothing natural about slavery.
Thankfully, the people who were listening to this argument were getting bored by the slave’s refusal to accept any evidence, and by his clever arguments. So they asked him what a slave actually is. Someone said that if a person has full rights of ownership over another, meaning that he is able to do whatever he wants with him, just as he could with any other piece of his property, then that person is correctly described as being the slave of the man who owns him. But the slave asked what ‘full rights of ownership’ meant. After all, there were many people who appeared to own a house or a horse or something when it actually transpired that they had no legal right to them. In the same way, a man or woman might be owned unjustly. The first slaves must have been captured in war because they could not have been born to slaves. In other words, they had been free, and were then forced into servitude, which hardly seems very moral and is hard to defend at all. It certainly isn’t possible to say that such people were naturally slaves to start with because they weren’t – they were free. And if they had managed to run away they would have been free again so would have returned to their former status.
Someone who was watching the argument suggested that although these people were clearly not slaves, their children and grandchildren were because they were born slaves. ‘But how?’ replied the slave. ‘If it is being captured that makes a man a slave, then shouldn’t the term be applied to those who are captured themselves much more than to the descendants? If it is not that but birth which is the criterion, then it is clear that since those who were captured were free men, their children could not be slaves either.’
Perhaps, the slave went on, the word ‘slave’ originally just meant someone with a servile character. For we all know free men who have the traits of slaves and slaves who have a noble disposition. It’s like the terms ‘noble’ and ‘well born’: people first used them to refer to those who were well born in terms of virtue and their behaviour, not in reference to who their parents were. Slaves are not naturally bad or worthless any more than free men are naturally good. People have simply stopped thinking about what they are saying and use the terms wrongly. In fact it is those who behave in a morally worthless way who are the true slaves, whether they are actually slaves or have been born free.
The Greeks could have argued all night. What we have to realise is that while free is to slave as good is to bad, that does not necessarily imply that all slaves are bad – they can only be so regarded when they behave slavishly. The moral status of a person is a reflection of the quality of their soul. Their social status is irrelevant to this question. For it is vital that we understand this one fact: that slaves are human beings and should be treated as such.
Those masters who have both wisdom and learning realise that they must live on close terms with their slaves. They are, after all, the people with whom you share your roof. The vagaries of chance are so great that you should remember that it could easily have been you who ended up enslaved instead of being the master. That is why it is ridiculous when people say they would be ashamed to have dinner with a slave. Why? What reason is there to be so arrogant other than the dreadful practice of most masters nowadays, that they must be surrounded by a whole crowd of slaves. The master today stuffs his face until his stomach is so bloated and distended that it can barely digest the vast quantities of rich delicacies which have been crammed into it. Then in a great effort of straining he vomits it all back out again.
While he does this, his wretched slaves aren’t allowed to so much as utter a sound but have to stand silently or else get thrashed. Not even an unintentional hiccough is permitted in case it distracts the master from his huge feat of gormandising. Any noise from the slaves will bring the most severe punishment. All evening, while the master repeatedly fills and empties his stomach, they stand there, silently shivering in hunger and fear lest their grumbling stomachs disturb their master from his table.
When masters treat their slaves like this, is it any surprise that they go round gossiping about him behind his back? By contrast, those slaves who were allowed to speak not just in front of their master but actually with him, were prepared to die for him so great was their loyalty. They would willingly stand between him and any danger that threatened him. They might talk when they served him his dinner, but they kept silent when they were being tortured by his enemies for information that might harm him.
If you think slaves are our enemies then you should remember that they are enemies only because we make them so. There are so many ways in which people treat them cruelly and inhumanely, as if they were no more than dumb animals rather than human beings. When, for example, we recline on our couches to dine, while they have to stand around and wait to clear up the vomit from those who have either eaten or drunk too much, or more likely both. Or when some poor slave has the job of carving expensive pheasants and fowl. He skilfully guides his well-trained hand around the bird’s breast and rump as he carves it up. But he won’t get any of the meat, poor man. He lives for no other purpose than to skilfully carve up roast chicken. The master who feels he has to teach a slave this skill is more to be pitied than the slave who has no choice but to learn it.
Another slave pours the wine. The young man is dressed like a woman and struggles to look as youthful as he can, although signs of his manhood are starting to appear. Another slave’s job is to measure how the guests behave. He stands there nervously and makes a note of those who behave so outrageously that they are worth inviting back tomorrow. There are slaves who prepare the menu and know every detail of their master’s taste. They know exactly what will perk up his taste buds and amuse his bouche, as it were. They know what kinds of presentation please him, what kind of novel cuisine will liven him up when he feels sick. They understand what bores him and when he will crave certain things. Needless to say, the master wouldn’t dream of eating with these cooks because he thinks it would be beneath him to share a table with a slave.
I once saw the master of a certain slave leave him standing outside in the rain while his guests were invited inside to dine. The master later put him up for sale among a group of particularly worthless slaves – the kind who were sold in the first lot of the day when the auctioneer is just warming up. And what b
ecame of this supposedly worthless slave? Why, he became a notoriously powerful freedman, who rose to a position of great influence under the emperor. He ended up with thirty large onyx columns in his dining room. And he made sure he paid his old master back for the contempt with which he had treated him.
You must think carefully about the fact that the man whom you call your slave was born in the same way as you, breathes like you, and dies like you. You must see through his servile exterior and recognise the free man within, in the same way that he can see your inner slave. Fate is always bringing men down and making even those of the highest birth grovel in the dirt. Do you really think you should disrespect a slave whose status is one to which you yourself might one day be reduced, if chance wishes it so?
I don’t want to give you a lecture about how to treat your slaves. What I really want to say to you is this. Treat your slaves as you would wish to be treated by your own superior. Whenever you think about how much power you have over your slaves, remember how much power your master has over you. And if you object that you don’t have a master then remember what chance can do and how there may well come a day when you do have one.
So forgive your slaves when they make mistakes, have conversations with them, be courteous to them, share a meal with them. At this point all those who go in for luxurious living will scream at me: what a disgusting and undignified way to behave! But can’t you see that this was how our great ancestors wanted us to behave towards our slaves? They called them ‘members of the household’ and the master ‘head of the household’ because they were all part of the same family unit. They gave masters a position of respect and the power to administer justice within the household. They thought the household was a miniature version of the state.
So, you will ask, you want me to invite all my slaves to dinner every night, do you? Not more than you invite your children, I say. You shouldn’t just ignore people who work for you because they carry out low-status jobs. You can’t judge a mule-herder just because he has a miserable job. It’s his moral character that really counts. Jobs are assigned by chance, but everyone has their own moral character, which is something they themselves can develop. You must invite some people to have dinner with you because they deserve it, and others so that they are encouraged to deserve it in the future. If there is something slavish in your slaves’ characters, then mixing in the company of free men such as yourself will drive it out of them.
You see, you shouldn’t draw your friends only from among those of a similar class. If you look carefully, you’ll find friends in your own home too. Good wood often warps if no craftsman uses it. But if you try it you will find that you have lots of good wood to use. Just like when you are buying a horse, you don’t examine just the saddle, you look at the horse underneath. So you are a fool if you judge a man by his clothes or social status. The man who you see as a slave might well be free in his heart.
In fact, we are all slaves in our hearts. Some are slaves to sex, others to money, some to fame, others to status. All of us are slaves to hope and fear. Let me give you some examples of slavish behaviour among the so-called nobility. I know a man of consular rank who acts like the slave of an old woman because he is desperate to inherit her fortune. Then there is the wealthy old man who lusts after some young slave girl and thinks he can win over her affections by charm rather than force. I can think of many sons of the best families who have become infatuated with actors and actresses on the stage; and there is no kind of slavery more dishonourable than that which is entered into voluntarily. So you shouldn’t let these kinds of people stop you from fraternising with your slaves and treating them pleasantly and not as their arrogant superior. Let your slaves respect rather than fear you.
I dare say that some people will accuse me of inciting slaves to revolt and overthrow their masters. They will say that slaves, as befits those of low status, must treat us, their masters, with respect and deference. But these people want to be treated better than a god. If you are respected you are also loved, and love cannot be mixed up with fear. So you must realise that you don’t want your slaves to fear you, and that when you punish them you should try to do so with words. Beatings should really be reserved for punishing beasts. We have so much luxury that we get mad at every little thing that doesn’t please us completely. We are acting like tyrants, for they have fits of anger that are completely inappropriate for their position of power. But that power means that no one will remonstrate with them. And in reality the things that displease us are so minor that they cannot harm us. So what if we don’t get exactly the right delicacy served up in exactly the right way? By throwing great tantrums we actually just do ourselves more harm. Anyway, I don’t want to preach to you. Managing slaves is difficult and often annoying but you should try to keep these ideals in the back of your mind even if in reality you fall short of them. Otherwise you will find that you soon slip into bad habits and you will start treating your slaves as if you are a despot and they are dumb animals.
You must remember that if slaves are not naturally slavish then you are not naturally masterful. Status is not enough: you have to prove it by your actions. Your slaves also, of course, have to show that they are not slavish, by behaving nobly and as a free man would be expected to. If slaves continually sink into bad behaviour then they cannot be surprised if people think they have a natural disposition to vice, as well as an inbuilt moral inferiority which makes them incapable of aspiring to any of the higher things in life.
I want to prove to you that slaves are capable of behaving in the best possible manner. They are not all cheeky or cunning, but can be both loyal and noble. Instead, because their souls remain free, they are able to behave with the utmost virtue. There are many people who question whether a slave is able to do his master a good turn. In fact, slaves often go well beyond what is required of them in order to help their masters. There are many examples of slaves who have fought to protect their masters without any regard for their own safety, and even when pierced through with multiple wounds have kept on fighting until the last drop of blood has left their veins, and by doing so have bought their masters enough time to escape. Then there are those slaves who have refused to betray their master’s secrets even when threatened and tortured to the point of death.
In many ways, examples of slaves behaving in a most virtuous way like this are all the more remarkable for their rarity. Such acts are to be praised even more than comparable ones by free men, because they have been done by those who have to labour under the constraints of necessity. But despite the unpleasant authority that their masters have over them, the love of these slaves for their masters has overcome any resentment they may feel at serving as a slave.
And in fact these noble slaves are not so rare. When the town of Grumentum was being besieged and had become completely desperate, two runaway slaves crossed over and gave assistance to the enemy. Later, when the victorious army was running amok throughout the captured city, these two ran on ahead by a route that was well known to them to the house in which they had served as slaves, and they helped their mistress escape. When any of the invaders asked who she was, the slaves said she was their mistress and they were taking her away to execute her because she had treated them so cruelly. But in fact they brought her outside the city walls and hid her very carefully until the enemy’s soldiers had had their fill of slaughter and pillaging. Then they set their mistress free again. She in return freed them both immediately; she certainly didn’t feel degraded by having her life saved by people over whom she had the power of life and death. Indeed, she became famous and her generosity became an example for all Romans.
Or there is the story of a high-ranking official called Paulus, who was lying on his couch having dinner, wearing a ring on which was inlaid a large gem engraved with a portrait of the emperor Tiberius. He stood up and relieved himself in the chamber pot. A notorious informer called Maro noticed this, and saw a golden opportunity to have Paulus indicted for polluting the emperor’s
image, thereby gaining himself a large reward. But Paulus’s slave also saw what his master had done. Immediately the slave took the ring from his drunken master’s finger and put it on his own. So when Maro appealed to the other diners as witnesses that the emperor’s image had been violated, the slave simply showed them that the ring was on his own hand.
When the divine Augustus was emperor, dinner parties had not yet become so dangerous but they could cause problems. A senator called Rufus was so drunk that he claimed out loud during a dinner that the emperor would not return safely from a journey he was about to undertake, because all the bulls that were going to be sacrificed to ensure his safe return would actually be hoping for the opposite. The following morning, the slave who had been standing at the bottom of Rufus’s couch during the dinner told him what he had said during the meal while he was drunk. The slave urged him to go and confess it to Augustus before someone else informed the emperor. Rufus agreed and went to see Augustus. He swore that he hadn’t realised what he was saying the previous evening and prayed that any misfortune would land on his own head and not the emperor’s. He begged Caesar to forgive him. When the emperor said that he would do so, Rufus replied that no one would believe it unless the emperor gave him a present. He then asked for a very generous amount of money. And Augustus gave it to him, saying that he wouldn’t ever be able to afford to get really angry with Rufus. Of course, the emperor acted extremely generously here in forgiving the foolish Rufus, but it was the slave who really saved his master. It goes without saying that he was freed at once by Rufus.
I could go on and on listing the many good qualities that have been found to lie in the heart of a slave. There was the case of Urbinus. He had been sentenced to death and was hiding on his estate at Reate. When his hiding place was betrayed, one of his slaves put on his ring and clothes and, pretending to be his master, lay down in his master’s bedroom. The soldiers sent to get Urbinus broke in to the house, found the slave, who calmly offered them his neck. He received the executioner’s blow as resolutely as Urbinus ever could have. After Urbinus had been pardoned, he had a tomb made for his slave with an inscription describing his great act of virtue.