The Code of the Nesilim. Free Essay

Please write the Thesis Statement for your Research Paper.

The maintenance of law and order is a social construct that can be traced back to 1650 BCE, as evidenced in the Code of the Nesilim an ancient Hittite (Nesili) legal code dating from c. 1650 – 1500 BCE. Through the maintenance of law and order by referring to the documented legal systems in the ancient artifact, the people of Bronze Age Anatolia could grow their civilization into one of the most advanced empires of the time by observing the various legal notation outlined in the Code of the Nesilim.

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Critique of a Primary Source

Please write a one or two-paragraph summary of the primary source. In this section, please introduce the author and title of the primary cause.

The primary source, The Code of the Nesilim, c. 1650 – 1500 BCE, Paul Halsall, August 1998, from Oliver J. Thatcher, ed., The Library of Original Sources (Milwaukee: University Research Extension Co., 1901), Vol. III: The Roman World, pp. 9–11 and scanned by J. S. Arkenberg, Dept. of History, Cal. State Fullerton. Prof. Arkenberg is a legal code that was developed by the Hittite empire. Early civilization began to realize the importance of law and order in the development of society ("Internet History Sourcebooks"). As there were no rules that governed the communities and the interpersonal interactions between the city's members, injustice was widespread. As a result, the Hittite society leaders saw it necessary to come up with a set of rules that would bring social justice to all the people irrespective of their physical strength or social class.

Although the author of the Code of the Nesilim is unknown, it is speculated that it could have been a person with a higher social power in the Hittite society, probably even a king. The legal code took into various aspects of the Hittite social living aspects, including; morality, justice, property ownership including slaves, outlawing social vices that were probably rampant at the time such as theft, assault, murder, divorce among other social order factors. The original form of this legal code was engraved on stone tablets, which were well preserved for reference purposes. Besides the provision of the various legal obligations, the Code also outlined the attributed punishments that were associated with the breaking of the laws contained in the code.

Please write one or two paragraphs to explain why this document is a primary source. Your answer should discuss one of the following four options.

A participant wrote the document in the historical event.

The Code of the Nesilim is a primary source as a participant wrote it in the historical event under review. Although the original author of the legal code is unknown, he was an active member in the making of the statutory statute. Although the procedure followed in coming up with the laws is not clearly defined, it is evident that the rules were made bases on several days to day legal issues that the Hittite empire faced. Some of the legal codes addressed topics such as slave ownership, murder, social order, and justice, among other aspects of social living. The main aim of developing the system could be viewed as an attempt to bring law and order into the social setting for more harmonic interactions between the people.

It is speculated that the legal statute was written by a high ranking member of the Hittite empire, even probably a king. This is because a law of such importance required an individual with a higher understanding of the social structure of the community at the moment.

The document is a transcript of an oral statement that was spoken by a participant in the historical event.

The statute could also be considered as a transcript of an oral statement that was spoken by a participant in the historical event. This is because the documentation method used in the preparation of the Code of the Nesilim was engraving on a stone tablet. As a result, it is highly unlikely that the lawmaker was the same individual who made the engraving on the stone tablet. If this is the case, then the document is a transcript of the oral statements made by the lawmaker(s) and recorded through engraving on the tablets by the carver who worked the stone tablets.

C. A witness wrote the document of the historical event.

D. The document is a transcript of an oral statement that was spoken by a witness of the past event.

Please write one or two paragraphs in which you use external criticism to evaluate whether this primary source is authentic.

A variety of factors supports the authenticity of the Code of the Nesilim. First, the methods of information storage and recording used are following the information preservation methods that are expected to be prevalent at the time i.e., around 1650 BCE. The Code of the Nesilim was written on stone tablets, which can be considered to be a biblical allusion of the writing of the Ten Commandments, which were also carved into stone tablets. The figure below depicts the legal code. In archeological research, research methods such as carbon dating were used to determine the age of the stone tablets on which the code was written. The results indicated that indeed the law dates back to around 1650 BCE.

The authenticity of the code of the Nesilim could also be verified through historical accounts in the study of the Bronze Age Anatolia, a region that bordered upper Mesopotamia. Although some of the historical accounts do not account for this ancient legal code, it takes into account the Hittite empire and the advancements that the civilization made in terms of governance and social structure reforms. Such accomplishments could get attributed to the better and improved social order in the empire, which the Code of the Nesilim could have played a part in influencing. This is because law and order were essential aspects of ancient civilizations that managed to rise above their surrounding empires. With better governance, social development followed suit.

5. Please write one or two paragraphs in which you explain why this primary source was written. Options include:

A.Publication for everyone in society (e.g., a legal document, a news item, or literature)

The Code of the Nesilim was written as a publication that was intended for all the members of the Hittite community and served as the legal statute of reference. Enforcers of the law used the code in the delivering of justice to any individual who was found to violate any of the codes that were outlined in the code. The account served the purpose served by the constitution today. Outlining behavioral expectations as well as the penalty attributed to the failure of observing either of the legal obligations, the document helped in the maintenance of law and order in the Hittite empire.

Therefore, the legal artifact was published for everyone in the community at the time and ensured that their legal guidelines were made known to the people, thus guiding them to act accordingly. The Code of the Nelisim was developed as it was necessary to ensure that there was a reference point to which law makes as well as those passing judgment could refer to in determining the presence of guilt and also in the administration of the attributed punishment to the laws violated. As a result, there was the necessity to make such a document well known to the public as this ensured that there was the observation of public law in the enforcement of the legal procedures.

B.A document that was intended for only a small number of other people to read

(e.g., a letter, or a secret report)

C.A personal diary entry

Please write one or two paragraphs in which you use internal criticism to evaluate the author’s sincerity and objectivity.

The author’s sincerity and objectivity in the writing of the Code of the Nesilim is evident throughout the account. To begin with, the code takes into account almost all aspects of social living that are expected to have prevalent at the time. For instance, the code stipulates various laws and regulations that explain the interactions with slaves between slave owners and even the slaves themselves. This is an indication that conflict arising from slave related issues was widespread at the time and consequently necessitated addressing. In the code, the author lacks bias and ensures that all the parties discussed are well represented in a fair and just manner.

The author’s objectivity is also exhibited in their quest to bring about social order and justice. The Code of the Nesilim was written with the specific aim of ensuring that social law and justice was presented with a chance to prevail. This was probably because the use of violence to settle disputes was a menace to social order and development. The author's objective was to come up with the code of legal statutes that govern interpersonal behavior, and the Nesilim Code met this particular objective.

Please write one or two paragraphs in which you use external criticism to evaluate whether the author of this primary source was intentionally withholding information. If information was withheld, then please explain why.

The author of the primary source was not withholding any information. It is expected that the primary objective was to put out as much information as possible out there that would facilitate amicable governance. The code of the Nesilim was a legal statute and thus was required to address a wide variety of social life factors. However, due to the limitations at the time about information storage methods available, it was challenging to include all the desired notations. As a result, the only information that was considered high priority was documented in the primary source. This kind of information included daily life interaction aspects among the members of the community at the time.

Please write one or two paragraphs in which you explain how this primary source is relative to cultural, religious, artistic, economic, political, and social forces that have shaped society through the present.

The primary source is relative to various aspects of modern-day society. The Code of the Nesilim can be compared to the constitution of today, whereby, the legal obligations of the people have outlined as well as the associated penalties for the violation of these laws. The primary source, therefore, is relative to elements of the present time society such as; politics, social forces, economic factors, religion, among other social aspects that are governed by the present-day legal frameworks. Therefore, this makes the Hittite empire an advanced civilization of its time, having realized the importance of law and order in social governance.

Please write one or two paragraphs in which you explain how this primary source is it relative to cultural, economic, political, and social events and themes in various geographical areas.

The primary source is relevant to political and social events and themes in various geographical areas as it has managed to outline the various human rights aspects of social living. Through a clear and detailed analysis of how people should interact with amicably, the primary source addresses the challenges experienced in various geographical areas such as Africa. Due to poor governance and failure to observe the legal requirements, these geographic locales have continuous difficulties experienced, which could be solved by adhering to the issues addressed in the primary source.

Conclusion. If you were teaching this course, please explain why your world or would not require your students to read this primary source.

As a teacher taking students through this course, I would require my students to read the primary source. This is because not only is the cause a good information source about ancient history, it also provides the learner with an opportunity to underst...