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Okay, so there aren't primary sources. That's totally fine, though at this point, it's moot to speak about the relative ability for a traditional culture to cop
by froasty 8y ago
Okay, so there aren't primary sources. That's totally fine, though at this point, it's moot to speak about the relative ability for a traditional culture to cope with elevated mortality since we've moved into dealing with conjecture purely in slave economies created by conquerors and entirely subaltern peoples.
Just curious, earlier you stated that you spent "a lot of [your] mental life in the 17th century", where does that reach extend to? Is it just Portugal or is it specific to the Atlantic Slave Trade?
- benbreen 8y agoAll history is conjecture. The primary sources relating to 17th century Angola exist, they're just sparse. I just told you that Queen Nzinga sent letters to the King of Portugal, for instance. If you're genuinely interested in this, John Thornton and Linda Heywood both give good surveys of what sources are available and what they can tell us. I work on early modern Britain, Portugal, and their colonies.