Talk:Mesopotamian marriage law

I realize this is rough, but I think it should prove valuable as a foundation. Elijahmeeks 18:42, 1 March 2006 (UTC)


 * As a note, this comes from an old undergraduate paper of mine, one that I cannot locate a bibliography for. The information is valid, but I won't have the time or resources to reference it.  If anyone is taking Dr. Claussen's course on the Ancient Near East at the University of San Francisco, then they should be able to find the material to reference this. Elijahmeeks 06:38, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

Concerning the statement: "A woman is required to kill herself if a charge of adultery is brought against her, not for her impurity, but because she has brought shame upon the family." I'm not sure this is an accurate statement. For example, the Laws of Ur-Nammu state that "If a man accuses the wife of a young man of promiscuity but the River Ordeal clears her, the man who accused her shall weigh and deliver 20 shekels of silver" (Roth, Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor, p.18, LU14). If another man "violates the rights of another and deflowers the virgin wife of a young man, they shall kill that male," though nothing was to be done to the woman unless she, "on her own initiative" approached another man. Then, virgin or not, if it gets discovered "they shall kill that woman; the male shall be released" (ibid., p18, LU6, 7). One of the laws of Lipit-Ishtar states that "If a man claims that another man's virgin daughter has had sexual relations but it is proven that she has not had sexual relations, he shall weigh and deliver 10 shekels of silver" (ibid., p33, LL33).

The more extensive laws of Hammurabi state that "If a man's wife should be seized lying with another male, they shall bind them and throw them into the water; if the wife's master allows his wife to live, then the king shall allow his subject (i.e., the other male) to live" (ibid., p105 LH129). And if "a man pins down another man's virgin wife who is still residing in her father's house, and they seize him lying with her, that man shall eb killed; that woman shall be released" (ibid., p106, LH130). If a husband accuses his own wife, but she isn't caught in the act, "she shall swear (to her innocence by) an oath by the god, and return to her house" (ibid., p106, LH131). If someone else accuses a man's wife and she isn't caught in the act, "she shall submit to the divine River Ordeal for her husband" (Ibid., 106, LH132). If he can't bring any proof backing the claim that the act took place at all, "they shall flog that man before the judges and they shall shave off his hair" (ibid., p105, LH127). The only other law on adultery and female death has to do with a woman who has her husband killed because she's in love/sleeping with another man; if she gets caught she was to be impaled (ibid., p110, LH153).

The Middle Assyrian laws become even trickier, covering incidents besides consenting adultery like a woman who invites a man's wife to stay with her and sets her up, either inviting men in so the wife might willingly sleep with another man or else where she secretly brings a man in who seduces/rapes the wife. Even then, the wife has to immediately publicize her rape or the conditions change.

In some of these laws, the woman was required to be punished by death (with her accuser), but generally only when it could be conclusively proven that any adultery had in fact occurred (caught in the act). But more often extenuating circumstances were given and accusations had to be proven. There is also quite a lot of current scholarly skepticism that these laws were ever fully carried out as they are written, or whether they were ideals or standards from which to start a judgment, changing the ruling based on circumstances and evidence or perhaps even the judges' preference for mercy or the wealth of either party. Furthermore, in none of the laws is there any evidence that a woman was expected to self-sacrifice her life for the sake of family honor. Frankly, I have difficulty believing any society can push such laws, let alone socialized peer pressure, unless the adulterous parties are rich and the society enjoys a certain level of luxury. It simply isn't practical to go about killing all women accused or caught in adultery, or expecting them to do it either. If such a custom was practiced, it must have been pretty rare. There is no evidence for it in the law codes, although there may be some Babylonian or Assyrian literature that includes gods or heros of some sort expected to do this sort of thing. It seems less likely concerning the Sumerians, since women generally enjoyed a higher status (because goddesses played a more important role in society--see Nemet-Nejat, Karen Rhea, “Women in Ancient Mesopotamia” Women’s Roles in Ancient Civilizations, A Reference Guide, ed. Bella Vivante, Westport, CT; London: Greenwood Press, 1999, 85-114).

Very possibly shame was brought on the family, but it's not clear from the laws whether it was such shame that occasioned the adulterous woman's death or, in fact, whether it was the general rejection of social order and just laws and a fierce protection of property (and the uncertainty of paternity) that required an adulterous woman's punishment. I think this needs some sort of explanation or citation to back it up. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dcmcmurtry (talk • contribs) 07:00, 11 August 2008 (UTC)