Use Of The Government And The Stratification Of Gender Equality During The Early Civilization Of Mesopotamia

Hammurabi’s codes were just and sometimes unjust. They would have harsh punishments and sometimes not as harsh punishments. For example, Hammurabi would have harsh punishments like, blinding someone and throwing them in the water, or if someone were to rob some ones house and put a hole through the wall to get in they would whether get killed and pierced or hung in the hole in the wall that they created. Also he would have not as harsh punishments like, giving people money or cutting off their hands. Hammurabi had a lot harsher punishments for woman that did not obey the codes and not as harsh punishments for men that did not obey the laws.

Hammurabi’s code was just because of its personal injury laws. In law 209 it states, “If a man strikes the daughter of a free man and causes her to lose the fruit of her womb, he shall pay 10 shekels of silver.” (Doc E). This law is just because the free man is taking care of his daughter by making sure the man pays for what he caused. In law 213 it states, “If he has struck the slave-girl of a free man and causes her to lose the fruit of her womb,

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

“If a man violate the wife of another man, who has never known a man, and still lives in her father’s house, and sleep with her and be surprised, this man shall be put to death, but the wife is blameless” (Hammurabi).

Around 4,000 years ago Hammurabi’s code was created by Hammurabi the king of Babylonia with the goal of bringing justice to his kingdom. He even claimed that Shamash the god of justice commanded him to make these laws. Then his laws were carved into large stone’s called steles, written in the ancient cuneiform written, and then put up throughout all major communities of Babylonia. However, these ancient laws were not fair for everyone in his kingdom. Hammurabi’s Code was unjust because the laws pertaining to family life, property law, and personal injury were unfair.

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

(2) (3). First of all, the biggest different between Hammurabi’s Code and the Sharia Laws are difference in term of geography and the time when they were introduced and applied. The Hammurabi’s Code was applied in around 1760 BC for 46 years by the Babylonian (Iraq in the modern day), when knowledge and intellectuality of people in that period of time still were very limited. Unlike Hammurabi’s Code, even the Sharia Law was created a long time ago but it has still being used quite popularly in the modern day. The Sharia Law has been used in many Islamic countries in the modern life and time when people’s knowledge is extraordinary and unlimited. However, having read these two laws, we have realized that there are many of similarities between Hammurabi’s Code and the Sharia Law, which prove Hammurabi’s Code in a way can be considered as a model of the modern day laws against the fact that the gap of time is over 3000 years (1). One interesting point is that people lived in 3000 years ago share the same view with people nowadays. General violations like stealing, lying, prostitution and murdering are punished harshly. Therefore, even though Hammurabi’s Code did not exactly resemble the modern-day Sharia laws, however it shared the same basis, which was to keep justice and legal rights of everyone in place and both against women harshly (2)

Ancient societies’ life practices such as Mesopotamia and Egypt are depicted in The Code of Hammurabi translated by Theophile J. Meek and in The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead translated by R. Faulkner. The King of Babylon, Hammurabi himself in 1700 BCE, wrote The Code of Hammurabi containing severe two hundred and eighty two law codes that the whole society was to follow. Similarly to law codes, The Egyptian Book of the Dead was used in the New Kingdom that is around 1550 BCE to around 50 BCE, it also served as a platform way of life emphasizing on the afterlife rather than the present as in The Code of Hammurabi. Both The Code of Hammurabi and The Egyptian Book of the Dead display the consequences of living a just or unjust life in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. Although, while in The Code of Hammurabi punishments varied concurring to your social status, unlike in Egypt, where the granting of an afterlife was attainable for all. Ultimately, in both civilizations consequences would arise accordingly on how the masses lived their daily lives, but both The Code of Hammurabi and The Egyptian Book of the Dead provides us with insight on how a each respective society was kept in order.

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: Was it just? Hammurabi’s Code was king of Mesopotamia 4,000 years ago and he even made 282 laws which protect the family, personal property, and personal injury. To begin, Hammurabi’s Code did protect the family. For example, if a man has a diseased wife and the illness has taken over he will still have to take care of her. He would need to take care of her until she dies.

Have you ever wondered what it was like in the early times? Well hammurabi's code was way before you can imagine...about 38 centuries ago. Hammurabi's code wasn't just because of its family laws and its property laws. Over all hammurabi was just a cruel person and harmed people in different ways that some don't want to know about.

Hammurabi’s Code Hammurabi’s Code was created by Hammurabi. I think that Hammurabi’s Code was too brutal and unfair because in almost every rule there is death, unfair laws and much more horrifying deaths, and laws. Some of these documents and laws are truly unfair, and some don’t make any sense. In my opinion, these laws are very terrifying as we talk about these laws. Hammurabi’s Code pococurante about women.