Hammurabis Codes of Laws - Essay Example

In the introduction, Hammurabi reveals that the laws are to provide justice to people. Subjects of Hammurabi’s code of laws would thus, benefit from the justice and fairness provided by the code. The phrase “an eye for an eye” represented Hammurabi's code of laws. The phrase may sound harsh, but it means more than its literal meaning. The code differentiates punishments for wealthy persons, commoners, and even slaves. It outlines the terms and conditions for purchasing and selling slaves (Jarus, 2013).

Hammurabi’s code deals with many important topics that concern the Babylonians. The code provides rules for witnesses and persons making accusations of crimes. It also highlights processes to handle thefts and destruction of property and offers guidelines for trading and solving business problems. Subjects of Hammurabi’s codes would benefit so much from the justice and fairness of the code details. In most cases, the rules are reasonable and clear to give Babylonians a framework to live with order. Justice and order among people are the basis for the formulation of Hammurabi’s code.

The code would also benefit Babylonians when comes to solving family matters such as marriage, divorce, and issues of adoption. Surprisingly, the code also outlines payment layouts for doctors and other professionals. Other important components covered in Hammurabi’s code that would benefit its subjects are those related to farming and keeping animals. Agriculture was the main human activity in Mesopotamia. Developing laws that ensured justice and fairness for farming activities would greatly benefit people in Babylon. The code also benefited women. The code gave women certain rights including the right to buy or sell property as well as the right to seek a divorce. In addition to justice and fairness, Hammurabi’s code emphasized honesty for all parties in a trial or court (Jarus, 2013).

A codified set of laws are well organized and written logically. Codified laws e.g. Hammurabi’s code is easier to locate and follow. codified laws are also hard to change. The fact that codified laws are put in groups further makes it easy for a person to locate and find such laws. Codified laws are consistent and follow a logical form of documentation. Having such laws maintains order, justice, and stability in societies. Codified laws ensure that people have guidelines to live with and also plan their lives. In ancient Babylon, the codification of Hammurabi’s code resulted in injustices and feuds. Though the laws seemed harsh, Hammurabi's Code was the basis for the codification of many other civilizations' laws during ancient times (Johns, 2009). Read More