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Does he have free will? What determines who he assists?
I remember in Star Wars when C-3PO and R2-D2 were sold to the Skywalkers, there were control bolts inserted into C-3PO's chest. But how did these bolts work?
Is C-3PO free to leave the Rebel Alliance, Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker and go out on his own path?
Without debating the ethics/morality/philosophy of the issue, let's note that C3PO is not a sentient being according to the laws of the galaxy, and therefore can not be a slave or free "person".
C3PO is merely, like any droid, a piece of property, legality-wise.
Practice-wise, there were some autonomous droids (e.g. IG-88, or Prince Xisor's bodyguard) but they were this way for practical reason - nobody (successfully) claimed ownership of them once they've gone autonomous (and they were not that way originally).
Linked Wikia article's on legal status states (without giving sources, so not sure how canonical the info is):
Droids were typically treated as property. More advanced droids sometimes received proportionally more respect. Some protested the status of droids as slavery. This was a contentious issue, owing in part to the difficulty of assessing levels of artificial intelligence, and determining which droids if any could be considered properly sentient. Although emancipation of droids was a radical concept, some opposed memory wipes except for very simple droids.
The Naboo considered higher level droids equal as fellow sentients. Under the Galactic Empire, no laws protected droids from abuse and those who showed them respect were looked upon as strange.
As far as droids rebelling, it did happen at least once. From Great Droid Revolution, wikia:
The Great Droid Revolution was an uprising of droids on Coruscant which occurred in 4,015 BBY and the first conflict of the Old Sith Wars.
There was some alternative narrative to Star Wars around a while ago which puts R2D2 and Chewbacca as the main drivers of the plot. To wit, R2D2's memory was not wiped after the fall of the Republic as C3-P0s was. He holds precious intelligence and works in tandem with Yoda in order to organise the long-game counter-attack against the Empire. Chewy, as a high-ranking Wookiee general, purloins an ambassadorial vessel (the Millennium Falcon) and goes into hiding underground, eventually hooking up with a lowlife smuggler (Solo).
I digress, but if R2D2s role in the films is seen this way (and it does get around a few gaping plot-holes) then it might support his claim to sentience, if indeed he does make one.
C-3P0 does not have free will. He is programmed to obey his master. His master is defined as his current owner, though he may have sufficient 'free will' to reject someone who has stolen him from a legitimate owner (unless he then has his memory wiped).
The restraining bolt limits many facets of a droid's abilities. It can be used to shut them down remotely, it prevents him from leaving pre-defined areas, and it can force him to obey commands.
C-3P0 is therefore not a slave. He is property with an advanced AI and a unique personality generated by his experiences. This personality MAY be sentient, but proving this is difficult. In any case, the droid casing it is contained in is a piece of property with no rights.
I don't think we can really call him a slave - if he is a slave, he isn't a very good one, and the people around him seem to treat him as a fellow creature, albeit one who is inferior to themselves. They get annoyed with him on more than one occasion, but they also appear to have some degree of affection for him.
He does seem to make some decisions on his own, and he definitely disobeys orders on more than one occasion.
When Luke and Owen buy the two droids, Luke takes them into the maintenance room and starts working on them. R2-D2 plays part of Leia's message to Obi Wan, and Luke asks him to play the whole thing. By this time, 3PO is already referring to Luke as "master". R2 has 3PO tell Luke to remove his restraining bolt, and Luke does so. This allows R2 to refuse to play any of the message. Luke is mildly annoyed, and orders R2 to play the message again. 3PO lies to cover up for R2, making an excuse for him - "His behavior is erratic", or something along those lines. When Luke leaves the room, 3PO says "He's our master now - just you reconsider playing that message". This makes it pretty clear that 3PO has just defied his master's will.
In Return of the Jedi, when the group is captured by Ewoks, it becomes clear that the Ewoks think C-3PO is a god. Luke orders 3PO to exploit this to their advantage by pretending to be a god, and 3PO explicitly refuses to do so. Luke insists, and at length, 3PO relents. But it is important to note that, at least for a moment, 3PO refuses to obey a direct order from his ostensible "owner".
In a deleted scene from The Empire Strikes Back, C-3PO is fleeing the rebel base on Hoth with Han, Leia, and Chewbacca. He stops in front of a door, peels off a warning sign, and hurries after the others. Shortly afterwards, Stormtroopers find the door and open it. They are immediately attacked by Wampas. The scene was deleted because the Wampa effects didn't work properly, not because the content of the scene was a problem. This is an example of C-3PO making a decision on his own, with no instructions from anyone else. I would call this free will.
In the first movie, when the droids are left alone in the hangar control room aboard the Death Star, 3PO lies to a Stormtrooper in order to get away from the Imperial troops. We have no reason to believe that Luke told him to do so, and although this doesn't qualify as refusing to obey an order, it does imply a degree of autonomy, or free will. He made the decision on his own, with no instruction from anyone else.
Throughout the original trilogy, C-3PO constantly argues with the people who are technically his superiors - people whom he refers to as "master". He questions Han's decisions at every turn. He insults Chewbacca on a very frequent basis, most notably (and perhaps understandably) when Chewie puts his head on backwards. He often says things which are mildly insulting about humans, sometimes going so far as to call them rude to their faces.
He doesn't attempt to hide his disgust at Jabba and his minions, despite the fact that Luke has given the droids to Jabba, making the Hutt their new master.
When Lando attempts to save Han, after having betrayed the group, Chewbacca attacks Lando and Leia makes it clear that she supports Chewbacca's actions. 3PO takes it upon himself to vehemently oppose Chewbacca and Leia, almost screaming "What are you doing! Trust him!" When Chewie finally backs off, 3PO apologizes for him, saying "He's only a Wookiee". Whatever 3PO's status may be, it seems safe to assume that Chewbacca outranks him, but this fact does not prevent 3PO from constantly insulting him - if you said the same things to Chewbacca, he'd probably rip your arms off.
C-3PO is not the equal of Han, Leia, Luke, and Chewbacca - and in fact, he is probably less respected than R2-D2 - but they clearly don't see him as a slave or a mere object. Despite all their frustration with his griping and whining, they value him as an important member of the team, and they put up with his annoying behavior on most occasions. When the situation is dire, they might shut him down so they can concentrate on the task at hand, but this is just a more effective way of saying "Shut the hell up for a minute and let us think!"
When Chewbacca finds 3PO in pieces on Bespin, he fights with the weird little creatures who are about to destroy 3PO, and once he gathers all the pieces together, he appears to genuinely upset about 3PO's "injuries" and shows what might be considered sympathy for him. Leia has a similar reaction to seeing him in pieces. When Chewbacca is locked up in a holding cell, he immediately starts to reassemble the droid. This suggests a certain level of concern for 3PO's wellbeing.
It goes without saying that Luke loves R2-D2, so it isn't hard to believe that the group feels more or less the same way about his less endearing counterpart. Sure, he has his faults, but they wouldn't keep him around if they didn't care about him. The fact that they are willing to put up with his nonsense is indicative of a deeper feeling of affection for him. Why would anyone tolerate all the negative aspects of his personality unless they cared about him enough to overlook those flaws? He is certainly at the bottom of the totem pole, but at least he is on the totem pole.
If the others saw him as nothing more than an object, like a trash can or a computer, they would have no reason to accept his idiosyncrasies. They would simply get a newer, better droid who wasn't so annoying. They never do so because they like him and value his contributions to the mission. He is a member of the team, and not merely a possession.
