Wage labor

Abstract

Abstract In the Greco‐Roman world, wage labor was seen as sordid and those that performed it as servile. The writings of philosophers and orators, such as Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero, suggest a deep disdain for work, and manual labor in general (Balme 1984; Treggiari 1980). Not only were those that labored believed to be slaves to necessity, they were incapable of high‐mindedness and lacked a willingness and time to take part in the affairs of the state. However, the literary sources were not the product of those who performed services, and for the elite to admit their importance would undermine their own position.