Which best defines the southern code during the slavery era? a. white southerners believed women should not do certain chores and gentlemen should not do manual labor. b. white southerners thought free african americans were treated worse than enslaved african americans. c. white southerners considered it their duty to provide food, shelter, and clothing to enslaved people while relieving them of responsibility. d. white southerners felt there should be an immediate end to slavery and called for abolitionism.