A Question of Philosophy

Titus' first act upon arriving in Antioch was to seek out the house of Cassius Varus, a retired Roman general and city magistrate. It was said that Cassius was a man of perception, learning, and wisdom--a hard man, but one who understood what needed to be done and acted accordingly. After several visits to the Varus household, Titus soon discovered the truth. Great general though he was, Varus was only a figurehead. The real power lay with his wife, Sabine.

Superficially, Sabine was poised, elegant, hospitable, and doting to her husband of thirty years. She was everything that Roman society demanded from a wife. However, anyone who bothered to scratch the surface soon discovered that Sabine was erudite, disciplined, and dynamic. It was Sabine who had managed the family's estates during her husband's long absences on campaign. It was Sabine who had learned three languages in her youth and still read books voraciously. It was Sabine who had shepherded her husband's political affairs through times of discord as well as peace. Truly, Sabine was a remarkable woman, and her husband relied on her judgment implicitly.

It didn't take long for Sabine and Titus to become acquaintances, although he could not say that she was his friend. That distinction belonged only to the small corps of matrons who had earned Sabine's trust and esteem over many years. Titus did, however, succeed in capturing Sabine's attention through their shared interest in philosophy. They spent many an hour enjoying the General's wine and debating the nature of man. It was Sabine's opinion that slaves are not men, and she pointed to Aristotle's argument that any man who would allow himself to be enslaved is a natural slave. And certainly, any person who is free is superior to any person who is the property of another. Thus, according to Aristotle, it is only proper that such "natural slaves" serve their betters, and Sabine claimed that such slaves all but begged for the collar.

Titus disagreed most vehemently, arguing that there was no such thing as a free man wanting or allowing himself to be enslaved. Free men could be forced into servitude by the need for self-preservation, but that fact did not make them slaves by nature. Sooner or later, Titus argued, such men's free nature would manifest itself--they could never be truly broken. Titus went so far as to propose an experiment. If Sabine wished to put their theories to the test, he would submit for a month or two as an ordinary slave on any of the General's plantations. If Sabine's theories were correct, then Titus would find life as a slave so agreeable to his nature that he would beg Sabine to retain him permanently, and Varus would gain another slave. And if Titus did not embrace servitude, then his theories would be validated. Sabine always laughed off this idea, and Titus regarded her reaction as proof that he was right.

One spring afternoon Sabine and Titus were having the usual debate when a slavemonger led a coffle of a half dozen barbarian slaves, naked, collared, and chained, to the villa's courtyard. Titus and Sabine watched from the portico as the General inspected his property, noting an injury here and a defect there, which forced the monger to lower his price. The pair reentered the villa while Varus consummated the deal, so that Sabine could make the necessary entries into the household ledger. She sat down at a desk and began to write, while Titus joked that perhaps the moment was opportune to begin their experiment. Sabine didn't look up from her work.

"You may join them, if you wish."

Titus was taken aback.

"You mean... for our experiment, yes? I... I'll need some time to prepare..."

Sabine continued to write, without looking up.

"No. I mean you may join them as a slave for life. You have asked me a dozen different ways to wear our collar--don't try to deny it. Now, you shall either be what you were born to be, or you shall not waste my time with this subject again. Choose."

Titus bit his lip, turned around, and breathed rapidly. Sabine paid him no mind, continuing to write in her ledger. Titus was glad. He felt such shame when he said it, but he knew he had to say it.

"I will go with them."

"You will go with them, what? Start getting used to it, slave."

"I will go with them... Mistress."

"Good. I must say I don't mind getting something for nothing. The wheat will be coming in soon, and we always need slaves at the millstone. You would have cost us at least five hundred denarii. My husband will be pleased." She smiled, and summoned a slave.

"Fetch the general for me, will you, Drusilla?"

The slave left at once, and returned with the General.

"Husband, this is the natural slave I told you of. He has asked to wear our collar, and I told him we could always use another slave at the mill. What do you think?"

Varus inspected Titus carefully, the same as he would any slave, and then he nodded. "A bit soft, but I'm sure Marcellus will shape him up in no time."

Sabine smiled as the General summoned his overseer.

"Marcellus, this slave goes with the coffle. Be careful. He speaks excellent Latin and knows the area, so he may try to escape. Collar and chain him, and be sure to inform Felix that he will have to be broken. I want him flogged and kept in the ergastulum [a prison for unruly slaves on large plantations] until he learns his place. You will also tell Marcellus that Sabine and I have taken a special interest in this one. Break him, but do not ruin him."

Then Sabine spoke up.

"Husband, don't forget about my mark!"

The General chuckled. "Ah... how could I forget? His cheek is to be branded with the letter S."

Marcellus bowed his head and led Titus out of the villa, while General Varus made an entry into his magisterial log:

"Captured runaway slave using the name "Titus." Unable to determine slave's true owner. Slave is to be flogged, branded with the letter "S" on left cheek, and taken into this household's service in partial satisfaction of my annual allowance."

Titus was quickly led out of the room, stripped, collared, and chained to the other slaves. Sabine watched from an upper room as the coffle departed for their thirty mile march to the wheat plantation--one of dozens the General owned. She chuckled and turned towards her husband.

"You see, husband? Philosophy can be a terribly profitable enterprise!"