Abstract

The aim of this article is to break away from different historian view points about the place of slaves in the modern period of spanish society. Some mention an idealized vison of spanish slavery. Slaves are almost exclusivery tied to the household world and considered as a just another member of the family. On the contrary, others depict a particulary somber situation assimilating him to a constantly mistreated animal, the victim of an outright genocide. However there is a middle-of-the-road situation between these extreme views of slavery. It works around the idea of profit. The captives lives are completely controlled by the masters. They - and only they - decide on the way they are physically treated (medical care, hot iron branding, or any form of mistreatment) or on their level of integration in society such as access to matrimony, affective or sexual life, religious practices). In any case this type of control corresponds to a basic need: making profit.