What is a key difference between indentured servitude and chattel slavery?

• A. Indentured servitude was longer in duration than slavery.
• B. Indentured servitude is for a fixed term; chattel slaves are permanent property.
• C. Slaves could gain freedom through land ownership; indentured servants could not.
• D. Indentured servants could vote; slaves could not.

Answer: (B)

The essential difference is the nature and duration of the labor relationship. Indentured servitude rests on a contract to work for a fixed term in exchange for passage, food, and shelter, and once that term ends, the person is free to pursue other opportunities, sometimes receiving a final reward like land or tools. Slavery, in contrast, treats a person as property to be owned for life, with that status typically inheritable by children and with no guaranteed path to freedom within the system. That fixed-term, contract-based freedom after a set period is what makes the distinction clear and why this option is the best answer.