I have a thought I want to put up before we abandon the origins of slavery. I've been thinking about Machiavelli and any relation he might have to treating people unequally. Now, I've actually read The Prince. It was a long time ago, and I wish I could read it again, but here's the deal. Machiavelli is not about being cold-hearted. He's about being practical. He is talking about how to maintain control when maintain control is your business. As Schepman said to Mellancamp when he came to auction of his land, I'm just doing my job. (Calling it your job ol' hoss sure don't make it right.)
What Machiavelli may have brought that led to inequality, even dramatic inequality, is detachment. Maybe that helps transform an economy (biblical slavery) to an autrocity (atlantic perpetual slavery).
While I'm on it, I think the Judeo-Christian tradition has some ugliness to deal with. Not the recognition of the practice of slavery. That's a sign of the times, and in fact the biblical tradition just regulates a common practice. What the Judeo-Christian tradition brings is the notion of exceptionalism. We are the God's chosen people. Africans aren't. This is a fine offering to a nomadic tribe that is getting conquered every few centuries by another Empire.
(Thanks to Matt for this btw, This really is super: http://www.mapsofwar.com/images/EMPIRE17.swf )
But when Constantine invited Christianity to mount the horse, well, suddenly exceptionalism becomes dangerous.
Darn, that post wasn't short either.
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2 comments:
Matt: We're making nice posts, but are we progression toward some kind of answer? I worry that we'll putter about the topic for a while without a definitive conclusion.
By the way, let's not get too concerned about post-length, I'd rather have a thought and topic fully explored than worry about something artificial.
Jim: It's a reasonable concern. I'll propose a conclusion on the state of the world in the Fifteenth century and begin disucssion of the quest for equality.
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