Laws can tell us many important things about a society such as values, beliefs, and norms. The first leader to write down and codify a set of laws was Hammurabi. Hammurabi created The Code of Hammurabi. This tells us many things about the life of people in Mesopotamia. Hammurabi’s code shows us that life in Mesopotamia was very difficult and unjust for the majority of the population (anyone that was not very wealthy). This is shown in the laws referring to professional standards, class structure and the nature of punishments. These three factors all come into play when looking at the difficult life of the people that lived in Mesopotamia.
The laws regarding professional standards are very strict and do not allow for accidental causes. If a surgeon operated with the bronze lancet on a patrician for serious injury, and causes death, or has removed a cataract for a patrician, with the bronze lance, and has made him loose his eyes, his hands shall be cut off (#218). This law displays the high standards for a
Laws are always changing over time to represent the current values, morals, and beliefs of societies. Life in Mesopotamia was very difficult and unjust under The Code of Hammurabi; but they demonstrated the beliefs and values of Mesopotamia. Through the categories of class structure, professional standards, and the nature of punishments it is easier to look at the society and have a view of the difficult life and injustices people must have experienced during that time.
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