Week 9 - Slavery and Honour

“If any one commit hybris against a child … free or slave … he shall suffer penalty or pay a fine.” → Shows that Athenian law treated outrage (hybris) as dishonourable regardless of status. Even slaves were protected, reflecting civic ideals of honour and justice

Aeschines (1.15–16)

“If anyone commits hybris against any child or woman or man, whether free or slave...” → Demonstrates that honour was safeguarded for all, not only the free. The law judged the act, not the rank, showing Athens’ civic emphasis on justice

Demosthenes (21.47)

“The law does not permit even slaves to be treated with hybris.” → Highlights the humanity (philanthropia) of Athenian law. Honour was extended even to the enslaved, showing moral ideals beyond social hierarchy

Demosthenes (21.48)

“I honour him as a gentleman.” → Xenophon describes rewarding honest slaves with wealth and honour, treating them “like free men.” Honour here is a tool of management, incentivizing loyalty

Xenophon, Oeconomicus (14.9)

“A share of honour should be given to those who are doing more of a freeman’s work.” → Suggests that honour was earned through conduct, not birth. Slaves who acted responsibly deserved recognition, showing honour as a negotiable social currency

Ps.-Aristotle, Oeconomica (1.1344a)

“Though innocent, I quailed and ran away from master.” → Captures the fear and dishonour of unjust punishment. Slaves were denied justice, showing how abuse undermined honour and distorted behaviour

Menander, Samia (641–4)

“Nature itself teaches slaves to give a just response of gratitude or revenge.” → Frames revolt as moral retaliation, not cruelty. Dishonour provoked rebellion, showing honour as central to both submission and resistance

Diodorus Siculus (34/35.2.40)

“I am perishing from being whipped; I am tied up; I am treated like dirt.” → A raw plea for justice. Lesis exposes the absence of honour in slavery, showing how enslaved people had to beg for dignity

Lesis’ letter (SEG 50.276)

“Know who you are … pass on to me and question me about those matters which concern an honest slave.” → Menander’s slave Daos asserts boundaries, showing how slaves negotiated claims to honour and respect within their role

Menander, Aspis (187–93)

“The mistress commanded … that every year … he performs what is proper for the woman who raised him.” → A manumission record showing how honour obligations continued after freedom, binding ex-slaves to ritual duties of respect

SEG 47.896 (Bylazora)

“Will Kittos get the freedom from Dionysios that Dionysios promised him?” → A Dodona tablet showing slaves’ hope for honour through manumission, revealing honour as tied to promises and freedom

Dodona tablet (6)

“Not only in political life should the powerful behave humanely … but also in private life … arrogant behaviour provokes slaves against their masters.” → Diodorus warns that cruelty breeds revolt. Honourable treatment was essential to prevent rebellion, showing honour as a stabilizing force

Diodorus Siculus (34/35.2.33)

“Remembrance of her former kindness … they all had pity on her … preserved her chastity unviolated.” → Rebel slaves spared Damophilus’ daughter out of gratitude. Shows how honour shaped revenge and mercy, proving slaves responded to honour with loyalty

Diodorus Siculus (34/35.2.40)