What Do You 'Think'?

What do you 'think'? How did people of different classes 'think' differently?

Thinking. Think about it. Ideas run through minds, thoughts go from one to another, and topics race through our heads. Different people think in different ways. A person’s experiences affect the way that they view certain topics, ideas, people, or situations. People of different social classes think differently based on their lives, what they have gone through, and their experiences in life.

A peasant is said to be “a member of a class of persons, as in Europe, Asia, and Latin America, who are small farmers or farm laborers of low social rank.” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/peasant) In the Middle Ages, serfs made up the majority of the peasants. Until the rise of towns, freemen, who owned small pieces of land and could move about freely, were a small portion of the society. A peasant could not refuse to work for a lord, and in return the lord could not evict him. This way of life could alter a peasant’s mind and make them think that they have to do everything they are told, or the opposite; when they are free, they will do whatever they want and not listen to anyone. Peasants were farmers and worked on the land. After doing this for some time, they may feel that the work is easy and not hard to complete, while others who never work on farms may think it is unbearable and extremely difficult to do. (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/prole.html) Peasants usually wore clothes made of wool or linen, ate a fairly unchanging diet, lived in small towns or on farms, and spent their life working long hours and having hard days. The life of being constantly under a ruler and told what to do could hinder a peasant’s freedom and cause them to look at situations in life differently than others. (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/pdailylife.html)

The word knight “was a term used to refer to a nobleman or warrior.” Being a knight became a sign of nobility and social status in the Middle Ages as it became more expensive to be equipped for fighting on horseback. Eventually the word “knight” became a formal title. A knight may think like a warrior, always be ready for battle, want to fight, and have a strong sense of what they believe in. Knights protected the lord’s lands from invaders and fought in the lord’s battles against other lords, so they have a strong sense of protection and caution and think about how they can defend, fight, and protect. Their thoughts would be very different than those of people in other classes. (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/knighthood.html)

People who lived in medieval towns, such as merchants, usually worked as farmers. Farming methods were inefficient and most of the population was needed to farm land for food. Once methods continued, more people were able to leave farms and earn their living by becoming craftsmen or traders. They formed the first towns. How to sustain themselves and provide for their families was what was on the mind of most farmers, craftsmen, traders, etc. Their thought about work each day, making enough money for their family, having a meal for their family to eat, keeping their house up and running, and paying taxes to the lords. (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/town.html) Towns were marked by social heterogeneity, “meaning that they were made of comprising people whose social standing varied widely and who formed different types of association based on factors such as neighbourhood, ethnicity, economic self-interest, mutual support, or common beliefs or aspirations; so that towns can be imagined as a complex patchwork of overlapping communities.” (http://users.trytel.com/~tristan/towns/townint8.html) The peasant’s way of life affects their perspectives on life.

People in life have different opinions, ideas, dreams, and points of view. The background, experiences, and values someone has cause them to think in their own way.

Works Cited

"Daily Life." Web. 30 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/pdailylife.html>.

Dictionary.com. Web. 30 Apr. 2010. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/peasant>.

"Knighthood." Web. 30 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/knighthood.html>.

"Roles and Rights of a Peasant." Web. 30 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/prole.html>.

"Towns." Web. 30 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/town.html>.

Web. 30 Apr. 2010. <http://users.trytel.com/~tristan/towns/townint8.html>.

Picture Source:

"Peasants Breaking Bread." Flickr. Web. 30 Apr. 2010. <http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Peasants_breaking_bread.jpg>.