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Analysis of the Code of Hammurabi

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Hammurabi was a Babylonian monarch who ruled from 1795 and 1750 B.C. He is

universally acknowledged for developing and implementing a well-organized legal system. The

Code of Hammurabi, found on a stele in 1901, is one incredibly preserved and complete

historical documents of considerable size ever unearthed. The Hammurabian Code is organized

into 12 divisions and contains 282 rules, 34 of which are incomprehensible.

The 282 rules, known as the Code of Hammurabi, represent one of the first and most

comprehensive documented law codes from olden history (King, 2005). These codes are said to

have inspired rules developed by Hebrew writers, particularly those found in the Book of

Exodus, and have provided the basis for creating authority in other societies.

1. What does the Code of Hammurabi tell us about the Class Structure of

Mesopotamian Society?

To obtain power to reign, the monarchs employed Hammurabi's system of rules. The

Babylonian God, Marduk, bestows authority to the monarch to command and execute the code of

laws. By establishing a basis for ethical quality, culture, class system, and gender interactions,

the code ultimately united, stabilized, and safeguarded the empire. The Code of Hammurabi

demonstrates that males and the rich were ranked in a higher class compared to the commoners

and slaves in historic Mesopotamia's social class system. For instance, if an individual shattered

a nobleman's body, the culprit's bones were broken; nevertheless, if an individual damaged the

body of a freedman, the offender was required to give 1 mina (King, 2005).

2. Was each Class Treated Equally under the Law? Why or why not?

According to the code of Hammurabi, the Babylonians believed that all individuals were

not equal. Slaves, common people, and nobility were all perceived separately under the law.
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Females enjoyed several rights, such as the power to purchase and exchange assets and have a

marriage separation. The class system was quite exact, with three distinct divisions: "the Awilum

(upper class), the Mushkenum (normal person class), and the Wardum (slave class)". Since, as

mentioned in the law, a slave might purchase their liberty, there is a free person class. Slaves in

ancient Mesopotamia received the most oppressive forms of treatment from the Hammurabian

code of laws. For instance, as code 282 stipulates, “If a slave says to his lord, "You are not my

master," and he is found guilty, his master will chop off his ear” (King, 2005). This ensured

meant that slaves were considered as property to their owners and were not at any point allowed

to go against the rules of their owners. The society had no other alternative except to belonging

in one of the above classes. It was straightforward, yet well-organized and efficient. Hammurabi

did not consider any individual in each class to be equal, but he served them properly and with

the privileges they earned in their class.

3. Legal System

Mesopotamia's governance may be regarded as a theocracy and a monarchy. King

Hammurabi, who governed Mesopotamia for more than, was certainly the most prominent

monarch. The population believed that Hammurabi was given authority by the gods to defend his

people, even the weakest. The monarch, who was regarded a real deity at the era, created the

code of laws. However, sources indicate that anybody with significant authority would

enact legal choices. According to code of laws cases were to be presented before the judge who

was in charge of making decisions. However, as law 5 states if an error occurred as a result of

the decisions made by the judge, he was bound to pay a reasonable fine (King, 2005).
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If a judge hears a case, makes a decision, and presents his decision in writing; if

later error appears in his decision, and it is due to his own fault, he must pay twelve times

the fine set by him in the case, and he must be publicly removed from the judge's bench,

and he must never sit there again to render judgment.

Criminal penalties varied from minor physical punishments like whippings to lethal

penalties like burning alive or execution.

4. How were Crimes Punished?

Before Hammurabi enacted the code of laws, individuals had no notion about what was

proper or immoral to conduct in the community. The punishments that the code of

laws espoused were severe. The death punishment is mentioned in more than 20 laws. Even

minor offenses were punishable by death under the laws. Individuals who were completely

innocent were executed. For instance as the first law states, “If anybody ensnares another,

imposing a ban on them, but is unable to prove it, the person who entrapped the other will be

executed” (King, 2005).

5. What does it tell us about the Status of Women in Mesopotamia?

Women’s freedoms were severely limited. They were characterized by their relationships

with their households. Women's traditional roles were to take care for kids and run the home.

They were treated as property/slaves rather than persons by their spouse. As code 132 stipulates,

"if the "finger is pointed" at a man's wife concerning another man, but she is not discovered

sleeping with the other man, she must leap into the river for her husband" (King, 2005).  It is

totally unjust to use a river to influence the fate of a person who is, in this case innocent of the

conduct.
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"If a woman is not innocent, but departs her husband and wrecks her home, disregarding

her spouse, this lady should be flung into the river," says Code 143 (King, 2005). Throughout

this era, a wife was expected to conserve her body in order to prove her worth to a husband.

When a woman was married, she became the possession of the man; males were permitted to

pursue romance outside their marriage with maidens and women slaves, but women would be

chained and thrown into the river together with their outside companions.

References

King, L. W. (2005). the code of Hammurabi: Translated by LW King. Yale University.

The Avalon Project : Code of Hammurabi (yale.edu)