In this paper, the two different systems of slavery have been chosen. One of the systems is the Roman slavery system, while the other system is the system observed in the Southern Area of America. Talking about the term slavery, slavery itself is one of the most common dilemmas observed in the history of mankind. People have undergone immense inequality behavior and suffered slavery due to the inequality standards set by the people of our society. In ancient times and even in progressive times, no rights were given to the slaves. They had to suffer from oppression and were propelled to work no matter what. Although the slavery system has existed at different times, the two most prominent systems of slavery are the slavery system of Rome and the slavery system of Southern America.
Roman Slavery System
Roman slavery played an important role in the development of the economy and society. Usually, slaves were observed to perform manual labor in the slavery system; however, in the case of the Roman slavery system, the slaves were bound to give domestic services as well. In certain cases, the slaves were appointed for highly skilled jobs or even professionals since the slaves were given lesser pay and more work to perform (Sellin, 2016). In the Roman slavery system, accountants and physicians were the common form of slaves observed in the country. All other slaves who had lesser skills and no experience related to the field of profession were forced to work on farms and live the life full of oppression and suffocation. Other than farms, they were forced to work in mills and mines. Since the skilled workers were working as slaves, the overall economy was improved. With short lives and brutal living conditions, the living standards of unskilled slaves were worse than the other ones.
Involved People
Basic people involved in the Roman Slavery system were the followers of Romulus. Romulus, in ancient Roman history, started the idea of selling children to work for others. He allowed Roman fathers to sell their children to other native people and earn a handsome amount of money from the selling process (Walvin, 2014). This idea expanded with the increase in the Roman State until a time was observed in ancient Rome when a certain group of people was named after the system of slavery in the region.
Conditions:
The entire Roman slavery system is filled with events that highlight slavery and warfare. Throughout the time period of the emergence and dominance of slavery, there were many slaves who were brought to different regions due to the warfare observed in those areas. Other than this, the common condition observed in the time of Roman slavery was the concept of piracy, which then took more attention with the increasing time. Many researchers have also found out the importance or the role of slavery in the field of trade and economy (Sellin, 2016). As far as the Roman slavery system is concerned, the system Roman elite enjoyed having more and more wealth by getting their work done by the slaves on different professional or unprofessional grounds.
Time frame:
According to Sellin, 2016, the time of the Roman slavery system started from the old times of the 1st century BCE till the recent ending of the form of slaves from the concerned area.
Major Location:
According to Sellin, 2016, the Roman slavery system had slaves from almost all of the countries in the World. Slaves were brought from across the Mediterranean and Europe, including Britain, the Balkans, Germany, North Africa, Hispania, and Gaul. Generally, slaves in Italy were local Italians, which also included a minority of foreigners.
Slavery in the Southern America:
The Southern Area of America is characterized by its division into white and black. There are dominant cultural aspects observed in favor of the White people in the society of the South. In the 17th century, the World observed the emergence of the idea of slavery in America. Although the South remained an undiversified area, there was an increase observed in the textile industry of the country. The elite class of the country was enjoying the perks of the health textile industry due to the handwork of the people from the lower class, termed as slavery at that time (Shi & Tindall, 2016). The sustained growth and industrialization were at their peak when the whites in the South enjoyed the hard work of the black people in their area.
Involved People:
The major involvement in this system of slavery was observed due to the White people (Riley, 2015). Race has always been an issue in the premises of America, which then formed the basis of this system of slavery.
Conditions:
Slavery in Southerner America is termed as the consequence of the Civil War. Many people still believe that slavery could have been avoided if there had been no civil war in the society of America (Shi & Tindall, 2016). When the country was divided on the basis of North and South, the elite class was highly present in the South area. This gave the people in the South a chance to utilize their dominance. This is when they started differentiating among people on the basis of their race (Riley, 2015). People of different or minority races were given exposure to slavery in either domestic service or on professional grounds. The slave trade was common in those days. People were treated like things at a time.
Timeframe:
Riley, 2015 is of the opinion that the Southern American system of slavery started in the 17th century when the dominance of white Americans was easily observed by many people.
Major Location:
According to the report given by the American Federal government, south of the Mason and Dixon Line, the Ohio River and the 36°30′ parallel are considered the major locations implementing high signs of slavery in these areas (Shi & Tindall, 2016). Other than this, the areas of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia are also included.
Similarities and Differences
Slavery in the Roman system was based on skilled and unskilled professionals, while slavery in the Southern American system was due to the difference in the races and other such factors in the society. However, both the system of slavery shared one common interest, which is the involvement of oppression and inequality in society.
Conclusion
Slavery is one of the most dangerous aspects of society that has been creating differences in the lives of the people based on inequality. Inequality has added to the social imbalance. The two most common systems of Slavery are the Roman Slavery system and the Southern American slavery system. These systems have marked an important place in history in different time intervals. Roman slavery system consisted of skilled and unskilled slaves who were then allotted work according to their talents. On the other hand, the Southern American slavery system was due to the dominance of White Americans in the society. This system started off in the 17th century, with many areas of the South being the victim of this system.
References
Riley, P. (2015). Slavery and the democratic conscience. Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Sellin, T. (2016). Slavery and the penal system. Quid Pro Books.
Shi, D., & Tindall, G. (2016). America: A Narrative History (10th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton.
Walvin, J. (2014). Atlas of Slavery. Florence: Taylor and Francis.
