Essay On The Code Of Hammurabi

Many people may say that the death penalty is a horrible way of justice but some may disagree. In my paper I will compare and contrast the 18th century B.C. Code of Hammurabi and its liberal use of using the death penalty in the United States today. Throughout my essay I will address the following questions: are there any instances in which the death penalty is considered justice, why is killing in some cases murder, might there be a historical connection between the code and United state laws?

One of the earliest documented codes of law that issued the death penalty was The Code of Hammurabi. According to livescience.com, The Code of Hammurabi referred to the set of rules or laws by King Hammurabi. The code was followed by the people living in his empire. There are 300 laws that discuss subjects, including homicide, assault, divorce, debt, adoption, tradesman’s fees, agricultural practices, and even disputes regarding the brewing of beer. I think he set these laws to try to create peace in his empire. Although I disagree with

actions, I strongly believe that in his mind he was only doing it for good intentions. He wanted to set order within the cities and states that he conquered and with that he knew he had to apply a set of laws that will keep his people in order. Many people would think of his set of rules as reasonable and fair but in my opinion any death to anyone is wrong.
In the United States the death penalty is not issued for as many offenses as the ancient Code of Hammurabi does, but it is given more in the United States than any other major nation. In the United States only 32 states have the death penalty. In order to receive you the death penalty you would have to be sentenced with murder. I think this penalty was given because most people believe if one is capable of taking another person’s life then they should be willing to give up theirs in return. Britain was one of the main countries that influenced America's use of the death penalty. According to Deathpenaltyinfo.org When European settlers came to the new world, they brought the practice of capital punishment. The first recorded execution in the new colonies was that of Captain George Kendall in the Jamestown colony of Virginia in 1608. Kendall was executed for being a spy for Spain. In 1612, Virginia Governor Sir Thomas Dale enacted the Divine, Moral and Martial Laws, which provided the death penalty for even minor offenses such as stealing grapes, killing chickens, and trading with Indians. I believe that this law was applied evenly because when the law was enforced it was mainly applied to murder cases and government uses.
Some may think if there were any historical connection between The Code of Hammurabi and the United States.The Code of Hammurabi affected people in many ways.

It taught them to follow the laws and obey them as well. The US Constitution does the exact same thing it makes people follow the laws and obey them too. They are both strict on punishment and what you can and can't do. To me these laws are in a way considered justice but, they do consist of murder something i’m not a big fan of. Therefore I can consider this as an agree to disagree because there are two sides to justice in my opinion sometimes you just have to do what you think is right and in some cases the death penalty just might be considered justice. I don’t think that the death penalty should be eliminated. I believe that their are people in this world who deserve the death penalty but i also believe the action in which that person is being punished should be a strong

crime.
In conclusion I believe that King Hammurabi only enforced the death penalty because he wanted to create and empire that had control and peace. I also believe that the United states enforced the same punishment with the same intentions as King Hammurabi. Even though most people may think that the death penalty isn’t justice I still stand to the fact that many people have different ways of serving justice and that everyone has their own opinion. If I was to choose a side I would choose the United States, I choose the U.S. because only 32 states consist of this punishment out of 50. I also agree with them because they mainly consist of this punishment for murder cases. As for king Hammurabi he enforced it on multiple crimes as I stated in my second paragraph. If King Hammurabi only enforced the death penalty on murder crimes I may have felt that his laws were fair. Both King Hammurabi and the United States have similar laws, but everyone has different opinions on what’s justice and what’s not.