Was a Slave Society Essential to the Development of Athenian Democracy?
Slavery was economically essential in a world where the only source of power was human and animal muscle. It was not always called slavery, but mediaeval serfs and villeins in England were certainly unfree, and bonded labour under various forms persisted in the civilised world for a long time – and still exists elsewhere. Small family farms have always depended on unpaid labour; nowadays in most countries, this is family labour, but slavery certainly fits in with a system where most farming is done in small independent units. I do not think there is a specific link with democracy. Tyrannies, kingdoms, aristocracies and oligarchies all used slaves as well. In general, the institution had advantages for certain slaves. Someone was responsible for the slave (or the serf) and could not – at least reputably – simply discard him because times were hard – so slaves might survive in shortages where free labourers would have a problem feeding themselves. On the other hand, some slave-users were
