Throughout history, women have faced limited legal rights and career opportunities in comparison to men. Traditionally, their roles primarily revolved around being wives and mothers. Furthermore, women were often regarded as commodities and could be bought and sold like slaves. Men, on the other hand, enjoyed numerous advantages and privileges under written laws. Both Egyptian society and Hammurabi’s code serve as examples of this gender inequality by granting women fewer rights than men. The mistreatment of women can be traced back to ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian societies where they were considered inferior and subjected to unequal treatment. These societal attitudes towards women are evident in the strictness of Hammurabi’s code which was created without much consideration for the well-being of women.
The Code of Hammurabi, which was created in 1686 BCE, sought to bring order and “justice” to Babylonian society. It comprised of 282 laws that aimed to address social inequalities and protect marginalized individuals from the privileged. While known as family laws, some provisions exhibited a gender bias favoring women, exerting control over them. Nonetheless, specific measures were included in the code to protect women from patriarchal dominance by limiting dowry usage and regulating bride prices and divorce.
Lawmakers may have viewed these laws as safeguards, but they ultimately acknowledge the state’s acknowledgment of the necessity to provide women with legal protections against male dominance. Frequently, women were treated as inferior individuals and denied equal treatment in legal matters. Even in these protective laws, women are referred to as lesser beings. For example, they are often considered as chattels, offering slightly more rights than slaves. Additionally, Hammurabi particularly focused on regulations concerning women’s marital status.
Hammurabi enacted laws that unmistakably indicated the subordinate status of women compared to their husbands, granting the husbands complete authority in the relationship. The institution of marriage involved the exchange of a bride for a specified price and dowry, implying that women were considered commodities to be bought and transferred from father to husband. A woman could attain the role of a wife solely through a unique marriage agreement, which, as per Hammurabi’s code, allowed for the inclusion of restrictive terms and conditions that imposed severe constraints on women.
The wife’s role as a maid-servant extended beyond serving her husband alone; she could also be required to serve her mother-in-law or even her husband’s first wife, reflecting the expectation of female submission. Furthermore, women face financial disadvantages. Although a man who marries a woman assumes responsibility for her debts, he can insert a clause in the agreement that permits him to offer her services as a maid-servant to those she owes money to, thus enabling the repayment of her debts.
The text highlights the significance of the contract and money in the relationship. Furthermore, it mentions the existence of laws that regulated the behavior of wives, reflecting a degrading belief that men were superior to their wives. Women who were considered undesirable as wives faced severe consequences. If a woman was deemed a bad wife, her husband had the power to send her away while retaining custody of their children and her assets. Alternatively, husbands could enslave their wives within their own homes, with minimum responsibilities of providing food and clothing.
When a man mistreated a woman, the consequences were different. A woman had the option to take legal action if her husband treated her cruelly or neglected her. However, the only solution available to her was a judicial separation; there were no repercussions for his maltreatment of her, in contrast to the penalties imposed on women for mistreating men. Instead of solely punishing women, other laws assigned them subservient roles and granted them second-class status compared to men. For instance, if a woman couldn’t conceive children for her husband, it was expected that she would find a maid who could bear children for him.
The maid, if unmarried, would have any children she had immediately given to the husband and his wife. The wife then had complete control over the maid and could even reduce her to slavery. The maid had no say in any matter, despite having carried a child for nine months and then being completely separated from them. Purchasing the maid also meant acquiring her childbearing responsibilities and depriving her of a life outside of the contract. While monogamy was expected, men often betrayed their wives by engaging in sexual relationships with their slaves without facing consequences.
Both parties involved in adultery could face execution. Adultery was defined as a man having sexual relations with a woman who was not his wife or under contract with him. In essence, men were prohibited from sleeping with married women, slaves, or single women, but had the freedom to exploit any woman under their service. They could acquire multiple slaves for personal gain if they had the necessary financial resources. The written laws not only granted husbands authority over their wives but also extended this control to fathers. Ultimately, a woman never truly escaped her father’s dominion.
Throughout history, women have often been defined solely as their fathers’ daughters and not recognized as individuals. This deprived them of their own unique identities and reduced them to being defined by the men in their lives. In these circumstances, fathers had immense power over their daughters, and disobedience resulted in severe punishment decided by male family members. Fathers also had the authority to determine their daughters’ futures without considering their input or choice. Sometimes, fathers chose for their daughters to become Vestal Virgins, who were allowed to marry but forbidden from having children.
The power to sell his daughter off for marriage was also given to the father. The father had the authority to make other decisions for his daughter, such as offering her services to specific gods and vestals. Essentially, he could sell her to the highest bidder for his own benefit. It is evident that the Hammurabi law system provided limited rights for women. Hammurabi’s Code has been regarded as the embodiment of written law for centuries. It is clear that Hammurabi’s legal system wasn’t aimed at promoting family law; instead, it served as a means to document laws that could control the lives of its female citizens.
One thing is certain, the early Egyptian and Mesopotamian societies utilized strict laws and legislation to exert control over women’s lives and subject them to lower statuses than men. This system permitted the use of money and contracts as means of exerting power over women, compelling them to comply with men’s desires. Fathers and husbands held absolute control over women, preventing them from asserting their individuality. Hammurabi’s code established a society that was unjust and morally corrupt, marking just the initial stage in the deterioration of women’s rights.
