ROLE OF GENDER AND CLASS IN ANCIENT BABYLONIAN SOCIETY

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Introduction

The Code of Hammurabi denotes principles or guidelines enacted by King Hammurabi of Babylon. It contained about 300 laws that governed the people through issuing cruel and usual punishment[1]. Hammurabi’s Code entailed different components, including civil law, criminal law, family law, and economic provisions. The objective of Hammurabi’s decree was to protect all classes within Babylon, through safeguarding the vulnerable, including slaves, children, and women against prejudice meted out by the wealthy and influential. King Hammurabi created his code to protect Babylonians equally, and accordingly. However, the social stature of lawbreakers and the circumstances of offence influenced the penalties of the Hammurabi Code. Concerning marital infidelity, the Code highlighted different punishments as it allowed men, but prohibited women from having extramarital relationships. In the Law of Hammurabi, regarding women as property, philandering women receiving harsh punishment, augmenting patriarchal practices, defining rights and responsibilities of husbands, as well as stipulating punishment are factors that explain the role of gender and status in Babylonian society.

Role of Gender and Class in Ancient Babylonian Society

According to Hammurabi’s Law, Babylonian society was to regard a woman as a  property of her father or husband, who managed her dowry. Marriage was a union guided by a contract; therefore, it stipulated the fate of a woman dowry following death or divorce[2]. For example, upon death of a woman her dowry would be taken back to her family to be administered by her sons, her brothers, or her father. During a marriage, a husband managed the familial affairs, including a woman's dowry; additionally, men had the responsibility of having emergency funds to take care of the wife and children[3]. The Code protected women’s sexuality, underpinning that it considered them as the property of their husbands. Therefore, the primary legal issue regarding marriage was the transfer of responsibility and the control of a woman. A woman being under the control of her husband was not the only gender role in the Hammurabi’s Law but also punishment on infidelity.

King Hammurabi highlighted different levels of punishment for men and women following infidelity, more importantly, because he trusted that women belonged to their husbands. The law permitted men to have extramarital relationships with slaves and maid-servants, but according to rule 129, unfaithful women “[…..were to be thrown into the water together with their lovers]”[4]. According to the Law, a woman’s sexuality was highly protected, indicating that she was to be controlled by her husband. For this reason, King Hammurabi dictated that adultery violated the laws of Babylonian society that postulated that women belonged to their husbands. Therefore, the Code of Hammurabi provided laws that protected both husbands and wives in different marital aspects from adultery...