World History to 1500
8 October 2015
Writing Assignment #1: Roman Slavery According to Siculus in The History of the World, slaves were often utilized to operate the mines during the 1st Century BC in Ancient Rome. These slaves would spend their days and nights in the mineshafts, often wearing their bodies down. They usually weren’t given rest or break from their hard labor. The slaves were forced by the whiplashes of their overseers to undergo the most horrible of hardships. Many slaves died because of the extreme maltreatment they went through. Slaves often prayed for death rather than life because of the amount of suffering they were forced to go through. Slaves were treated as if they were objects rather than human beings. As stated on page 172 in Shelton, a slave’s owner would rent out the slaves for a certain period of time. The renter is required to have the slave with in their presence day and night. The renter must feed and provide the slave with other necessities. The only thing the owner needs to still provide the slave wen being rented is clothing. The slave will be given four days off a year and any more days off due to illness, festivals or a pressing necessity on the part of his or her master would be deducted from the rental fee. The rent is due at the end of the month without delay by monthly installments. One of the jobs of slaves in Rome was farming. On page 165 to 166 in Shelton, Varro breaks up farming instruments in three categories. Slaves are found under the “articulate instrument” category. Slaves that work on the farms shouldn’t be timid and would have ‘overseers’ (who were also slaves) who would give the slaves on the land orders. The overseers must have knowledge in basic reading and posses writing skills. The overseer should be experienced in farming operations, because he not only gives orders but also performs the work, so the