ABSTRACT
Sexual relations between masters and their female slaves blurred distinctions between insider and outsider, free and slave. Skill fully manipulating to their own advantage the paternalistic rhetoric that, in other circumstances, legitimated their subjugation, female slaves were remarkably successful in these suits to win their freedom. In response to Margalida's allegations, Johan Ros not only denied paternity but also represented his slave's pregnancy as an act of rebellion. Certainly, in fifteenth-century Valencia, baptismal naming and testamentary practices all reveal how slaves were incorporated into and considered members of their masters' households. Since a female slave could significantly besmirch the honor of the household by committing "disreputable acts," or tacanyeria, within its confines, masters regarded the sexual activities of their female slaves with special anxiety. A further indication of how slaves were regarded as members of their extended family was the fact that masters and mistresses considered assaults against their slaves as assaults against themselves and the honor of their households.
