(Mis)Treatment of Women Intersecting in the Codes of Hammurabi and Deuteronomy (Ancient Near East and South Africa)

Abstract

This article describes the point of intersection at which the text of the Code of Hammurabi, the Deuteronomic code (ANE), and the context of South Africa meet. These relationships can be summarised as women being treated badly, so badly that one can almost describe this treatment as the “Wild West.” This depiction of the bloody violence in which women are subjugated and disempowered by men is appalling and is an indictment against men. Throughout history women demanded the protection of men, but were constantly exploited by them. Women are simply not honoured or respected for their innate human dignity. This is problematic because it has resulted in how men interpret the role and contributions of women in society and a country’s economic development. This has often led to women being perceived as subhuman and inferior to men. Women to a large extent in the media are not valued very highly in South African society, which has subliminally contributed to the disempowerment of women in general and the scourge of gender-based violence in particular.