JULY 23 LAW AND MYTHOLOGY IN ANCIENT GREECE
Posted at 10:01h in Knowledge Depot by Bade Alzubi 0 Comments
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Ancient Greece is among the most misunderstood early civilizations in terms of terms or laws and social regulations. Contrary to the “eye for an eye” approach in other ancient civilizations, Greece approached the law with a progressive perspective. In fact, many bastions of modern law arose from Greek philosophy. These are some of the distinctive qualities that define Ancient Greek law.
Philosophers in Athens
Most historians attribute the progressive legal system of Ancient Greece to the popular philosophers of civilization. Plato, for example, published a book called The Laws that acted as the starting point for progressive discussion. Years later, philosophers such as Aristotle offered refutations and criticisms of Plato’s crude ideas. There has never been such a development in the legal field before.
Most importantly, these developments took place in a city-state that embraced democracy. The Athenian government was among the most democratic of the time, and its political ideals seeped into the law. As a result, many historians—especially those most concerned with the development of law—report it among the most formative periods in the history of justice.
A Court of the People
True to its democratic politics, the court system of Ancient Greece was ruled by ordinary people. This framework serves as inspiration for our modern use of third-party juries to resolve every court case. In fact, Ancient Greek court cases were often public events conducted without any leadership. Public opinion has always been the determining factor.
But in Ancient Greece, there were often hundreds of jurors at any given trial. Where large sums of money hang in the balance, more than 500 jurors can vote for a heavily publicized event that serves as a form of entertainment. Passers-by can stop and watch the action during rush hour of the day.
The Draconian Constitution
Ancient Greek Philosopher Draco created a document that shaped the future of justice worldwide in 620 BC. Until the publication of Draco’s constitution, civilizations throughout history created regulations on a case-by-case basis. There was little consistency in the law and the ruling class abused its judicial power. Draco’s code introduced the first known written laws that every citizen could learn and obey.
Specifically, within the Athenian legal system, Draco’s law was designed to combat oral legal traditions within the court system. Draco found that even among ordinary people, court decisions are too often made on inconsistent criteria. As such, the Dracon constitution stands as one of the great political documents that have inspired many political movements throughout history.
In the end, Ancient Greek laws were far ahead of their time and they inspired the justice systems of many nations that followed. The most important takeaways from ancient Greek law were the democratic judicial process and the introduction of a written set of laws. These are the basic concepts of justice in the modern world, although each idea needs further development.
