So in short: nobles and commoners are essentially inequal, however it is the nobles choice wether to act according to that or not?
They are not "essentially" inequal. They
are inequal. Nobles
are superior to commoners. That is a known, fundamental fact of reality. No noble would even contemplate that they are equal.
You don't need to treat them like dirt. You don't need to beat them on a regular basis, or slaughter them on a whim. You can treat them nice, make sure they are protected, etc. After all, they are the source of all of your income. Your extremely lavish and luxurious lifestyle is based on exploiting them at every opportunity.
But no sane noble would *ever* contemplate that they are, in any way, equal. Because if they were equal, you wouldn't be able to keep them subjugated and exploit them for your own personal benefit.
