... claimed this was the cause of blindness in the peasants (Hoch, p.60). The huts were so tiny that there was no room for beds. High platforms over the stove and along the walls were built for the people to sleep on (Hoch, p.61). Fresh straw was used for comfort ... shares of the crops. The serfs had to live in such horrible and unsuitable conditions, yet, the masters forced them to pay ridiculously high taxes for the land they worked and lived on. This ever increasing exploitation of the serfs reduced them by the end of the seventeenth century ... . Children of the serfs, automatically be...

• Word Count: 3296
• Approx Pages: 13
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School