Law in the century of 3000 BC through AD 476.
3000 BC – AD 476 – Evaluative Essay 1
In these documents are listed various laws and guidelines for society. The first, considered the
oldest law code, was penned by Hammurabi around 1780 BC, and the second, the famous Law
of the Twelve Tables, was penned by the ancient Romans around 450 BC.
While both civilizations were pagan, and their laws occasionally refer to “the gods,” or children
of the gods, their civilizations provided some interesting standards for Western Civilization in
terms of written laws for the people to see and abide by.
The following excerpts cover laws related to trial and debt. Consider the similarities and
differences in these two codes and their legacies for Western Civilization. Your paper should
answer the following two questions, and the thesis statement should provide a clear argument
that includes both aspects of analysis.
1. How did these two codes contribute to the laws of Western Civilization?
2. What does Scripture say about law and justice, and how do these examples
either evidence that, or fall short of the Biblical standard?
Code of Hammurabi
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/ancient/hamframe.asp
Read only the following portions:
On trial :#s 1-3, 5, 12, 15
On debt #s38-40, 48-52
Roman Law of the Twelve Tables
http://thelatinlibrary.com/law/12tables.html
Read only the following portions:
Tables 1- 3 only
Old and New Testament Scripture – Biblegateway.com
*May also consult Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance or other Bible Concordance.
Format, Length and Organization:
o Length: 750-1100 words (roughly 3-4 pages, double spaced – not counting footnotes)
o Double spaced text, Times New Roman, size 12 font, standard margins and indentation (see Turabian: Notes-Bibliography)
o The paper should have a title page, body, and bibliography page
o Using Turabian Notes-Bibliography style, format footnotes for the paper.
o Basic Organization (except literature topic, given in literature document): The paper will consist of an introduction, body and conclusion:
o Introduction should be one paragraph and should introduce the main argument, ending with a strong thesis statement. The thesis statement is the ONE SENTENCE argument.
o Body of the paper is a few paragraphs (3-4) developing and supporting the argument, showing comparison and contrast of the assigned documents, as well as further analysis and Biblical evaluation. The body of the paper should provide specific examples and details from the assigned sources.
o Conclusion is the final paragraph, restating the argument and summarizing the main points of the paper, drawing conclusions for the reader. No new information.
Sources:
o The textbook and lectures can be used for basic background information, but the majority of supporting details should be drawn from the assigned sources within each topic document.
o For Biblical analysis, you can use your own Bible, or one of the following websites for finding and using Scripture verses. Please note that you need to use a standard translation (such as KJV or ESV) and not a paraphrase Bible (such as the Message).
www.biblegateway.com
Srong’s Exhaustive Concordance https://books.google.com/books?id=3TBGAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=strong%27s+exhaustive+concordance+of+the+bible&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwifx7zyxZHXAhXFPCYKHQwRBc0Q6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
