ANTHROP 2U03 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Serfdom, Flagellant
16 Jul 2018
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Document Summary
In parts of india and china where the plague"s impact on mortality was worst, the demographic and economic status quo weren"t transformed. The first two waves of plague, btwn 1347 and 1352 cut the population of europe roughly one-third, and it stayed low for a century afterwards. The balance of power in w. europe shifted to the advantage of workers and tenants instead of employers and landlords. Serfdom and villeinage decline when customary labour services could no longer be enforced. The living standards for the majority of the population materially improved. The usual ties that bound the people of society to their industries became weaker when rents and the price of land fell, wages rose, and people of lower class had greater bargaining power and became more mobile. Elites felt threatened by rapid social change in england b/c their workers where looking to be employed elsewhere.
