Indentured Servitude - Thesis Example

Introduction Indentured servitude first started in the year 1607, in Jamestown by the Virginia Company. Indentured servants were hired by the American landlords in order to take care of cultivation and other jobs in their property. This was the first time when servants were hired because of lack of labor in these lands. Historical Background Free people migrated from places like Germany and Europe to America in search of jobs and better opportunities. In order to get passage they had to work under a landlord for a certain time period; in return servants were provided boarding and lodging and given freedom after working for 4-7 years. Thesis Statement “Indentured Servants played a pivotal role in developing American economy”. Theme 1 The indentured servants lived a hard life with hope in the early Chesapeake settlements; they believed after freedom they will be able to own land for their settlement. Theme 2 With growing costs in hiring of indentured servants; landlords started finding alternative options for labors. Discussion Historical background or First Evidence Paragraph Supporting the first theme; the servitude in the sixteenth century had many effects in the early American society. The landlords in America needed servants drastically who could do their jobs because there was a lack of labor force in America during that time. Some people immigrated from Europe and other countries that were given legal permits to enter the provinces only after they agreed to serve the landlords for a certain period of time. The life of the servants was not so good; they were punished if they tried to escape or if they did not perform well. Their freedom could also be postponed if they did not do their job well. Still there was a good point that they could earn food and lodging from their masters. They also had some legal rights. Hence their life was far better compared to the black slaves from Africa. Evidence During the early seventeenth century labor were transported from Europe to newfound British colonies in America through sea. Even labors were interested about the servitude in America. In Britain due to surplus labor force the wages were low however in the British colonies in America the labors were given handsome amount of wages along with lodging. Though they were not free workers but many people were attracted towards the indentured servitude in America because there were many opportunities to grow in a developing country. The British colonies were interested by this trading because they could finally get people who could make them rich. “It was better to be shunned and have a servant, than to show self-respect and lack food” (Zinn 72) The Virginia Company paid huge amounts for transportation of labors and also agreed to pay before labors join their company. This shows the demand of labors in the America during the year 1611 (Hornsby 56). By the end of the year 1620, the Virginia Company decided to sell contracts of about a hundred servants to be prepared against old servants as soon as the servants reached America. This reduced the risk on their investment because it was a long journey in the Atlantic and many people had life risks. There were many developments progressing during this period. During this period; individual farmers and tradesman started investing on servants in order to make profit. This shows the popularity of indentured servitude during the formation of British colonies in the sixteenth century. Analysis The indentured servitude seemed very beneficial to poor English people because they could get their free passes to enter new lands with better opportunities (Horn 81). The only problem was to sustain five years servitude for their masters. In return the people would get paid well along with cow and arms and several other things that could help the freed servants to live in future. Though the set of rules were clear and people were interested to grab the opportunity very few of them could actually complete their contracts. Female servants were harassed by their masters. They were made pregnant forcefully and as per law their contract was never over. Many servants who were freed during this period owned their own lands and started their business. But the rich colony people pushed them towards mountain lands were there was less fertility. There were many other instances where the Landlords behaved like barbarian in order to preserve their own interest and make the servants suffer. These developments continued until 1670 when landlords started looking for alternatives which could profit them in a better way. Evidence In support to the second theme; Due to great developments in American society maintenance of servants became a problem for the landlords. The servants had some rights which did not allow the landlords to make their life worse. The expense behind servants was growing which could be threat for the land owners. The servants started to own lands once they were freed and the production in British colonies started distribution widely. The land owners during this time started to search for permanent servants from other part of world. This was the time when the African slave trade started progression. The white servants were not given much importance and the African slaves quickly replaced them in the agriculture sectors during this period (Roberts 141). The Americans decided to limit the rights to African slaves and make their life miserable so that they could not be free at any point of time. Undoubtedly the circumstances became favorable for the colonies. The slaves were transported forcefully to British colonies where they were sold to different owners by local traders. In the year 1775 about 300,000 Africans were transported to the British colonies. This shows the diversification of land lords from European white servants to African black slaves. The slave culture became prominent and there were more number of slaves transported even after slavery was declared illegal in America. The African slaves were preferred because they did not have any rights and were treated like prisoners in foreign lands. “Such was the life of slaves in America that if someone had the possibility of being there, would end up with horrible circumstances” (Bushman 432). The European servants on the other hand had much better position compared to African slaves. The African slaves were made to stay together like animals and they were forced to work more for more production. They were even not allowed to communicate once they were sold to the local traders in Africa. The Africans did not have right to speech, right to act or even right to earn money. They just provided with food and lodging. This was a tough time for Africans as well as the indentured servants. Analysis The indentured servants were relieved from their jobs and were not shown much interest because they became expensive for landlords (Barfield 19). During this period some of the indentured servants who were loyal were hired to look after the African slaves. The lack of transportation of poor English people became a matter of concern for them because they lost their opportunity to enter the developing sector. The indentured servants were also imposed huge workloads and were ill-treated by the land lords but the lifestyle of the servants was better compared to the slaves. They were given money in advance along with proper lodging facility. The jobs given to the servants were liked by them and they preferred to go to British colonies because they had more opportunities compared to their native places. The labors in Europe were skilled and there was less opportunity for people to sustain in the culture hence the developing British colony was a great opportunity for indentured servants but African slave trading limited the opportunities of European servants. Though the circumstances became worse for slaves but land owners were hugely profited by exploiting the slaves all over their estates. The indentured servitude was a great aspect in the history of America because it led to progression of the newfound British Colonies. The economy of America was controlled by the land lords and due to lack of workforce they faced huge challenges in production. The indentured servitude undoubtedly helped in building American colonies powerful. Conclusion From the above discussion it is clear that the European indentured servants had a positive impact on developing the economy in America. The British colonies in America had huge land with lack of people to work for them. The decision of importing servants from Europe was a great decision made by the land owners. The indentured servants were amused by the offer because they got the opportunity to build their hopes in a new and developing nation. The servants had certain rights and freedom contracts with them which made their journey filled with hopes. The servants were not treated in a very natural way but their lifestyle was far better than the African slaves. The indentured servants had an opportunity to be freed if their masters were honest. The trading of servants from Europe helped the newfound British colony to develop economically and socially. With the rise of population the production of goods showed immense effects in the later part of sixteenth century. Works Cited Barfield, Rodney. America’s Forgotten caste. New York: Xilbris Corporation, 2013. Print. Bushman, Brad. Social Psychology and Human Nature. Stamford: Cengage Learning, 2007. Print. Horn, James. A land as God Made it. New York: basic Books, 2005. Print. Hornsby, Alton. A Companion to African History. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. Print. Roberts, Kevin. The Atlantic World, 1450-2000. New York: Indiana University Press, 2008. Print. Zinn, Howard. A People’s History New York: HarperCollins, 2010. Print. Read More