Code Of Hammurabi Dbq

During the reign of Hammurabi of Babylon (1795-1750 B.C.E), king Hammurabi enacted the code. This code consisted of 282 that set standards of conduct and harsh justice for his empire in ancient Mesopotamia. Hammurabi’s laws also provided evidence about the status and rights of women in Babylonian society. These laws demonstrated scaled punishments, the idea of “an eye for an eye” or “a tooth for a tooth” (lex talionis, the law of retaliation), depending on the social status of that person.

In addition to these laws, Hammurabi’s laws were also gender biased .Laws for women were also unjust, gender biased and based on social classes. Women were not given an individual status according to these laws and also they weren’t allowed to trade and open their own business. Also, they did not have their individual rights. For instance, the law one hundred and twenty eight states that “ If a man take a woman to wife, but have no intercourse with her, this woman is no wife to him”. This law shows that the women were not treated equally and laws were based from the perspective of men and not the women. These laws also shows that how they were unjust to a women and suggest the social condition of them . Another law which states “If the "finger is pointed" at a man's wife about another man, but she is not caught sleeping with the other man, she shall jump into the river for her husband.” This was very wrong as it raised many questions about why only women were required to sacrifice and not men. Also, there was inequality between men and women as only men can choose their wife or perhaps buy her

* The Hammurabi code is definitely patriarchal. Most laws in the “Marriage and the family” section starts with an excerpt of “If a man”. This supposes that it is the males who are considered first. The Hammurabi code supports the patriarchal characteristic of Mesopotamian society. Additionally, a property law states

Gender roles in ancient Mesopotamia were clearly defined (teachmiddleeast.edu). Generally, men worked outside of the home and women stayed inside of the home while focusing on raising their children and keeping up with work that took place in the home. However, there were exceptions; we know of women who were “bartenders” and even women who were priestesses, but with limited responsibility. Due to the fact that some were from socially higher families and owned large amounts of property, those women were not allowed to marry. Women at the time were given much less freedom than men, however, women were more protected than men, which is seen in Hammurabi’s Code of Law, specifically in his 130th law:

Throughout Hammurabi's Code, it is made clear that the ancient Near East had a patriarchal system in which laws were needed to be put in place to grant protection to women from abuse. Laws placed restrictions on women's dowries and the manner in which divorce could occur. The state, therefore, recognized that women needed certain legal protections from male authority. Unfortunately, while such legal protections are granted, women are constantly addressed as a piece of property similar to slaves. Therefore, there are a few major issues in Hammurabi's Code that demonstrate how the individual rights of women took a back seat to social order and stratification in the ancient Near East. It was believed that a woman's sexuality should be

The “Code of Hammurabi” is considered to be one of the most valuable finds of human existence. In fact its very existence created the basis for the justice system we have come to rely on today. The creation of “the Code” was a tremendous achievement for not only Babylonian society but for the entire Mesopotamian region as King Hammurabi was ruler over all of that area. Its conception can be considered to be the first culmination of the laws of different regions into a single, logical text. Hammurabi wanted to be an efficient ruler and realized that this could be achieved through the use of a common set of laws which applied to all territories and all citizens who fell under his rule. This paper will discuss the Hammurabi Code and the

The Mesopotamian laws, in contrast, were hard and unfortunate, which were set by King Hammurabi himself during his long reign of Babylon. In Hammurabi's court, it did not matter if you were rich or poor, if you broke the law, and were found guilty, you would be punished and required to follow the laws and punishments that were clearly written in stone (the code of Hammurabi).

In 1750 B.C. a new king of babylonia arose by the name of Hammurabi. He continued his reign up until 1792 B.C. but most importantly his reign did not go unforgotten. During his reign he was in charge of giving punishments to the wrongdoings of his citizens. As he conquered other cities and his empire grew he saw the need to unify groups he controlled, he was concerned about keeping order in his kingdom. In order to achieve this goal, he needed one universal set of laws for all the people he conquered thus he created the Hammurabi code.

The Code of Hammurabi was a strict, harsh, and unequal way of punishment that focused on current attainable penalties for Mesopotamian society. The society wasn’t religious, they did not have any affiliations with spiritual beings, which is why punishments were needed for the specific moment

According to what it says in the First List of the Accused (pp 197-205), the titles in ancient Egypt were supposed to help the state function properly. That is to make sure that the state officials did their duty without corruptions or bribes and the misbehaviors were punished in order to protect people’s lives and property. If the officials, judges, tax collectors and even the powerful noblemen jeopardized the interests of the state, they would also receive severe punishment. In this way, the papyri enabled the king of the ancient Egypt to restrict the people of his state and what the papyri served was to stabilize the power of the king. However, the purpose of the laws was not specifically to keep or strengthen the authority of the king but to make sure that all of the people were treated equal. It was cruel in some circumstances but could make sense that the man who damaged others should be punished in the same way. The classic examples from the laws are “ If a man put out the eye, …” (law 196), and “…, his teeth” (law 200). From these instances, equality was thought to be significant in the codes and this point is what I consider shows more civilization in the ancient Mesopotamia than

The Law Code of Hammurabi is a native Babylonian text that served as the basic law code of society. The way of life was of the former Babylonians culture is totally different than what we are used to today. The text gives readers a vision of how ancient societies lived in these times. This law code gave society a diverse arrangement for citizens to follow. The social structure isn’t about wealth, they are judged by different standards (such as trial by ordeal). The husband is the dominant role of the house. The family structure is a patriarchal household and the power of the father is absolute. The Law Code of Hammurabi gives readers a clear thought of how unfair the earlier civilization of Babylonians existed through class structures, gender relations, and family structures.

In Ancient Mesopotamia, one of the earliest civilizations in history, the status of women was much lower than that of men. They did not have as many rights and privileges as men did. They were expected to be submissive to their male guardian, whether it be a father or husband, and carry out their specific duties. According to the textbook, “A woman’s place was in the home, and failure to fulfill her expected duties was grounds for divorce…” (Duiker and Spielvogel 14). During this time, Hammurabi, who came into power and ruled most of Mesopotamia in 1792 B.C.E., developed a code of law known as the “The Code of Hammurabi” that described Hammurabi’s strict system of justice. Under the code, men had the ultimate authority over their families and society in general. The punishments for women who neglected their household duties and the law were severe compared to those for men who broke the law. “The Code of Hammurabi” states, “If she is not innocent, but leaves her husband, and ruins her house, neglecting her husband, this woman shall be cast into the water” (143). This law is one of the several laws of the code regarding family, especially the relationship between a man and his wife. In the law, it says, “If a man’s wife be surprised…with another man, both shall be tied and thrown into water…” (129). Women were expected to stay faithful to their husbands since they were under their authority. This is also because the family unit was a key element to the development and growth

Hammurabi's code is unfair in Family law. If a married woman is caught in adultery with another man, they shall be bound and cast into water (Doc C). It is not fair to the woman because two people commit adultery not just the woman. This law is unfair to women and does not punish the man. These laws are unfairly strict. People should get another chance to redeem their mistakes. They should not have to give their life for one mistake. The woman may have been coerced against her will. The law should gather more information about what happened before taking such extreme punishments. Law 195 says if a son has struck his father, his hands shall be cut off (Doc C). The son could have been protecting himself from his father. In that case the father

The conclusion that can be made about women’s right based on the Hammurabi Code is that there were rights for women, but they were not equal to men. An example of women’s right is code number 8. This code shows that women doesn’t have to be confined in their own homes, they were allowed to go out and make a living such as selling liquor. But under the Code, women were not equal to men because if a man was taken as a prisoner in war and doesn’t return, the woman can leave and find another man. But if the husband who was taken as a prisoner of war comes back, the woman must return back to her husband. This proves that women were not equal to men because they were seen as a property of men and they were not allowed to live their life freely like men do during that

The principal subjects are family law, slavery, and professional, commercial, agricultural and administrative law. Economic measures set prices and salaries. The longest chapter concerns the family, which formed the basis of Babylonian society. It deals with engagement, marriage and divorce, adultery and incest, children, adoption and inheritance, and the duties of children's nurses. Every aspect of each case is addressed, enabling the greatest number of observations to be made.