Rape Law in the Old Testament and the Ancient Near Eastern Period - Report Example

Rape Law in the Old Testament and the Ancient Near Eastern Period s Introduction The rapelegislation that existed in the ancient Near Eastern texts was very in relation to the pervasive andocentric ideology that drove the punitive outcomes. However, evidence indicates that the lives of the women with regard to their perceived societal value were negatively affected in terms of their social status, despite the period or region. In the ancient times, the women did not have much power and authority and the laws showed resolutions that exhibited resolutions that prescribed transgressions which actually neglected to incorporate any consideration for the women’s viewpoint, who were the major victims of rape offenses. As a consequence, the women suffered and were antagonized historically by these laws that failed to protect them. Discussion Ancient Near Eastern rape laws Historically, both in the Old Testament and pre-biblical time’s women were treated as property. They were utilized for sexual gratification, as bargaining chips for negotiations, child bearing, as collateral in debt resolutions, labor among many others (Deut 25: 5-6; Pressler, 1993). In most instances, the women had to control in the manner in which they were handled domestically and socially. In fact, the social status of a woman was determined by a man’s willingness to marry her. This was true in the case of rape. When a woman was raped and lost her virginity in the ordeal, she also lost her social status. She only had a chance to redeem her status if the perpetrator came forward and married her. This implies that her situation could only be amended by the original rapist (Malul, 2009:9). The legislation of the times had made predictions of such outcomes of unfortunate violent acts which were inflicted upon numerous female figures in the stories of pre-biblical world and the Old Testament. Padure says, “In Assyrian Laws: there is death to a wife if she steals from her husband,” (2012:7). This example shows us that generally, the value that was assessed to the women’s life quality was deplorably low. Specifically, women were to be dominated and mistreated. Unfortunately, the rape laws during the Near East Period was actually more concerned with protecting men; the financial beneficiaries of men. Laws of the Old Testament In the book of Deuteronomy (22: 28), it says, “If a man happens to meet a virgin…..and rapes her he shall pay the girls father fifty shekels of silver. He must marry the girl” In this verse, the law sanctions the ravisher, but it does not protect the social dignity of the women (Clement, 1994). This is similar to the Near East periods. The Old Testament law does not give the affected woman some consideration of the trauma that she undergoes, and it forces her to go and stay with the rapist continuing to be his fodder. This portrays the way women were treated as tools. Consequently, they was no consideration for their right to choose, particularly when was relating to their own bodies. In both the Near Eastern and Old Testament periods, there is no documented case where the women were offered retribution or defended for suffering the violation. However, in all the cases, the male figures were sanctioned, while the affected women were viewed as an afterthought. Most interestingly, there were no rape cases that called for the death of the ravisher in both periods. Reasons for the formation of Ancient Near Eastern rape laws It is quite clear that the Near Eastern cultures had strong implications that were linked to the frahile foundation of family ownership and property boundaries. Land was viewed as a family property, since it was regarded as the economic foundation for community life and survival. The issue of inheritance was properly enshrined in the law codes. In that respect, virginity was core to the integrity of this concept. It was viewed as a commodity. The community law significantly influenced the public behavior in support of the fragile-social order (Miller, 2000). Punitive outcomes of the rape legislation in the Old Testament The rape legislations that assigned death penalty for transgressions is the epistemological integrity of understanding the ancient legislation in relation to rape (Scholz, 2005). The Old Testament stories were scribed by conducting an interpretation of the pre-existing data about stories of the legend. Therefore, it laid the foundation for translation through interpretation. As a result, the rape scenarios were overlooked and were determined to be something else because of the androcentric ideology. This school of thought did not take into consideration the woman’s point of view regarding the same issue. According to Scholz (2005), the rape law did not trust the woman’s word and action. The laws also did not entertain the woman’s innocence. For instance, the law in Deuteronomy 22:22 talks about a man and the wife of another man who got a death penalty after being found to have engaged in sexual intercourse. The original interpretation of this law correlates to adultery with a woman, and it appears the legislation assumes her consent. The type of relationship between the parties is framed within the prose of the language. However, the information only describes the punitive ramifications and goes ahead to neglect the crime’s elaborations. Consequently, both persons face death penalties. Punitive outcomes of the rape law in the Near Eastern During this period, the cases that involved adultery which involved a man and a married woman did not always lead to a death penalty. Various laws prescribed a wide variety of penalties, leaving it to the husband to choose the severity of the punishment. This implies that the difference between the Near Eastern laws and Old Testament laws that was prescribed for transgressors is that it did not involve the death penalty. For instance, Middle Assyrian Law 15 stipulated that “If a seignior caught another seignior with his wife, he has bring him either into the presence of the king or into the presence of the judges, when they have prosecuted him (and) convicted him, if he let his wife go free, they shall let the seignior go free, if the woman’s husband puts his wife to death, he shall also put the seignior to death, but if he cuts off his wife’s nose, he shall turn the seignior into a eunuch and they shall mutilate his whole face (Pritchard, 1969:181). However, in Deuteronomy (22: 28-29), when a woman is raped, her father has to receive financial compensation. This solution is also found in the Code of Hammurabi Middle Assyrian Laws. This implies that both laws advocate for financial rewarding of the victim’s father. However, the biblical law orders the rapist to marry their victims since they raped her (Pritchard, 1969). Incidentally, the Deuteronomic law is considerably harsher than ancient Near Eastern law, in particular to the Code of Hammurabi that permits the raped woman to marry whomever she wants. The Old Testament laws are also more restrictive compared to the Middle Assyrian Law that offers the raped woman’s father various options compared to the Dueteronomic laws that stipulate that only one is to marry his daughter; the rapist (Scholz 2005:36 -37). The rape criteria According to Gravette (2004), contemporary definitions describe rape as forcible sex with a person who is not willing. However, in the Old Testament, it takes a patriarchal shift, and describes rape as forcible sex between a male figure and female-ward of non-consenting male guardians such as the brothers or the father There is also evidence of societal trauma that is usually suffered by the female victims due to the violation. The narratives of the Old Testament evaluate the crime and relate the occurrence. The rape depictions intrinsically translate the helplessness, destructiveness, powerlessness, humiliation, self-blame and worthlessness, as well as the ruined lives in its wake. In Deuteronomy (22:22), it says, “If a man is caught lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die” This is a stark example of how a woman’s point of view is being completely ignored, and priority being assigned to the assumption that the sex was actually consensual. In addition, in verse 23 and 24, it says, “If…. a young woman….engaged to be married, and a man meets her…..and lies with her, you shall bring both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death,…..The young woman because she did not cry for help in the town and the man because he violated his neighbors wife (Deut 22:23-24).” This law is considered to be the worst in relation to its gross inconsideration. The legislation not only prescribes the female for a death penalty, but is also make an assumption that the woman made no attempt to cry out for help. It argues that if she had cried out for help, the town would have heard her cry and the rape would have been stopped. Conclusion Summarily, the Deuteronomic rape codes have numerous barriers with regard to the viewpoint of the woman. In most cases, a woman’s perspective does not get attention and assignments to her are made without understanding her position in the matter. In some instances, it resulted to thee death penalty being applied to innocent persons. The ancient biblical laws about adultery were administered by men who had custody of the legislation as well as the leverage to make decisions on the level that will be levied on the female transgressors. On the other hand, the Near Eastern rape laws have proven to be very compartmentalized, androcentric, and localized. However, both laws are very patriarchal when it comes to compensation to the victim’s father in case of rape. Reference List Clements, Robert. 1994.The Book of Deuteronomy : Introduction, Commentary, and Reflections. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press. Gravette, Sandie. 2004. "Reading "rape" in the Hebrew bible: A consideration of language." Journal for the Study of The Old Testament: 279-299. Malul. 2009. "What is the Nature of the Crime of the Delinquent Daughter in Deuteronomy 22:13-21?" Vetus Testamentum 59: 446-459. Miller, James E. 2000. "Sexual Offenses in Genesis." The Journal for the Study of The Old Testament 41-53. Padure, Ruxandra. 2012. "Comparison between the Biblical and the Near Eastern Laws." The Scientific Journal of Humanistic Studies, p.230-237. Pressler, Carolyn. The View of Women found in Deuteromic Family Laws. Berlin/New York: Walter deGruyter, 1993. Pritchard, James B. Ancient Near East Texts Relating to The Old Testament. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1969. Scholz, Susanne. 2005. "Back then it was Legal: The Epistemological Imbalance in Readings of Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Rape Legislation." The Bible and Critical Theory, Volume 1, Number 4: 36.1-36.22. Read More