West European Studies

Mankind has practiced slavery since the beginning of recorded history. References to this practice in which individuals are considered to be properties of others are evident in the Bible and other ancient literary materials. Societies that practiced slavery usually held individuals against their will and forced them to do various chores. By around the 15th century, the European traders started to engage in slavery around the coasts of Africa, especially at the historic Slave Coast, which consisted of countries in Africas West Coast. The interests of the traders shifted from the usual trade in gold that they had practiced for a long time to trade in slaves, which they considered to be readily available.

The trade in slaves was very fruitful and it mainly began for one main reason to supply workforce to the European countries. As the empires were increasing in size, they wanted increased manpower to aid in its expansion. The indigenous Europeans were not very much reliable since they were susceptible to ailments and were unable to work in extreme climatic conditions. However, the West Africans were tremendous laborious. They were experienced in agricultural practices, could withstand unfavorable climatic conditions, and they could be forced to work without much complaint.

There was much brutality that accompanied the selling of the Africans as slaves. To begin with, they were forced at gun point to get into the ships.  Aboard the ships, they made the horrific voyage to their destinations (Manning 111). They were chained and mercilessly packed into quarters that was not appropriate for movement or poorly ventilated therefore, most of them found solace in suicide through jumping overboard. These unfavorable conditions made most of them to suffer from malnutrition and various diseases and, eventually, early deaths before they were able to reach their new world.

In order to validate their actions, the traders dehumanized the African race which they were using for their own profit. They referred to the Africans as Black cattle that made the blacks to be regarded as an inferior race. The results of these are still evident in the current acts of racism present in our world. At first, the Europeans could not differentiate between works that were to be done by whites, blacks, or Indians since there was no racial demarcation in labor practices. However, the coming of many African slaves soon changed that perception (Berlin 1). Black slaves were unlike other slaves and they were given certain tasks to accomplish. It was then perceived that slave work could only be done by the African race.

The acceptance of the principles of democracy was facilitated during the Enlightenment era when individuals refused to be led by blind faith, and one outstanding example is Marquis de Condorcet who fought relentlessly for the abolition of slave trade. The French thinker, mathematician, and revolutionary, different from most of his contemporaries, represented the ideals of the Age of Enlightenment and rationalism. Condorcet could not compromise philosophical principles with political convenience and he held the view that slavery was not only inhuman, but also was not acceptable under any conditions. He regarded the practice of slavery to be equivalent to a capital crime (Rodriguez 183). In advocating for the abolition of slavery he authored a booklet called Reflections on Negro Slavery which played a pivotal role in the ultimate abolition of slavery.