Does the history of world civilizations suggest slavery and oppression coexist with the greatest achievements of humankind through the ages, and can we escape this paradigm today?
Most would say that slaves were vital throughout history, that it is simply unrealistic to think that the Great Wall, the Great Pyramids of Giza, or the Taj Mahal could have been built if they were without the use of slave labor. We often worship these architectural wonders, but we don't usually think about their origin. The few times when we do, we justify it with our lack of slave labor today. However, the fact is that slave labor is still a part of society, and as long as humankind wants to advance at a significant rate, we have to stick to methods of slavery and oppression.
When I think of Egypt, my mind immediately jumps to the pyramids. These incredible tombs stretched as high as 146 feet, took up to 80 years to build, and used between 20,000-30,000 slaves. In contrast, the Aztecs and the Mayans built similar structures without the use of slave labor. How can we justify our society's preference for the pyramids? Because the pyramids were constructed 3000 years prior. While geographical position also played a part in Egypt’s rapid development, it is undeniable that the slaves were also significant.
Slaves throughout history did not just increase architectural development. The use of slaves, especially from a foreign civilization, allows more of the population to fill key roles in society. As seen in the Neolithic revolution, the more freedom a civilization's population has over their roles, the faster it advances. China wouldn’t have its great philosophers, Rome wouldn’t have its great engineers, Islam wouldn’t have its scientists, and Greece wouldn’t have its artists without slaves. Slaves are the catalyst in the progress of society. Without them, we would recognize great civilizations that are completely different.
Today we are still dependent on some kind of slave labor; almost everything we use today was made by slave or other extremely low-paying labor in third-world countries. From our computers to our clothes, from pyramids to bridges, everything requires labor. No one can escape the temptation of having something made for next to nothing. Morally, this is completely wrong, but who needs morals when we have cheap stuff?
We don't need cheap stuff. Slavery has never been essential to a society. Great achievements might have taken longer, but as seen from the Aztecs and the Mayans it is absolutely unessential. We are at a turning pointing in history. We can continue a path of rapid development for humanity, or we can easily escape from slave labor in favor of human rights.
No comments:
Post a Comment