Magnus Goffin's dissertation on Self-Enslavement in Classical Roman Law is the first BCDSS doctoral thesis published in our Dependency and Slavery Studies (DSS) series with De Gruyter. We look forward to many more!
About the book:
Aside from being born as a slave or being enslaved during war, classical legal sources recognize other cases in which it was no longer possible to regain at least freedom. One of these cases was sale for the purpose of participating in the purchase price. This volume examines whether and how free individuals could enslave themselves, offering a legal and social-historical perspective on the ancient sources.
Magnus Goffin on his dissertation:
Not only those who were born as slaves or were enslaved in war could become slaves in terms of legal status. The classical legal sources recognise other cases in which at least the appeal for freedom was denied in the status process. Marcian, for example, mentions the case of someone over the age of twenty who allowed himself to be sold into slavery in order to participate in the purchase price. But could free people also enslave themselves legally in this way? And why would someone voluntarily seek the way into slavery?
The legal part of the thesis focuses on a detailed analysis of classical legal sources, in particular of the case of sale in order to participate in the purchase price (ad pretium participandum) and the case of sale in order to become a manager (ad actum gerendum). After analysing non-legal sources in the second part, the sources are brought together in a third part in order to provide answers to the partly legal and partly socio-historical questions.