For the Greeks, law and
government were one of their proudest achievements and almost sacred to them. The
connection to the will of the gods and law was very strong. For example, in
Sophocles’ Oedipus The King when the
city suffers a plague, Oedipus sees it as his role as king to create balance in
order to stop the plague. He entreats the gods to determine “by what act or word [he] could save
[the] city” (p. 113 of Greek Tragedies Vol. 1). This shows how for
the ancient Greeks law was determined on an individual basis and was based on
what an individual believed the gods wanted. As we see at the end of the play justice was often carried out by
individuals instead of by the government.
As
Athens moved into democracy and laws became more codified, the purpose of law
was to provide equality and justice for all people. Thucydides points this out
in his recount of The Funeral Oration of
Pericles. Pericles states that “if we look to the laws, they afford equal
justice to all in their private differences…if a man is able to serve the
state, he is not hindered by the obscurity of his condition” (p. 267 of The Portable Greek Histories). This view is that
law is to protect the weak and is the great equalizer of all men. He also
states that law and order is kept by fear, by stating that it “is our chief
safeguard, teaching us to obey… the laws” (p. 268 of Histories).
Lastly
in Plato’s Crito we are shown how
sacred the law was to some Greeks. For Socrates he felt that the law and his
country was “more to be valued and
higher and holier far than mother or father or any ancestor.” His willingness
to be put to death rather than break the law shows a motivation beyond fear to
follow the law. He sees following the law as his highest duty.
I
think that in our society we have similar views of the law. We recognize that
it is what holds civilization together but we are probably more motivated by
fear of punishment as Pericles mentions than the idyllic views of Socrates.
However I think for us we hold the law in less regard than the Greeks did. I
think that we are much more reluctant to follow the law and definitely don’t
have the motivation to carry out self-inflicted punishment as in Oedipus the King. I think sadly our
society values more the ability to get away with breaking the law as is seen in
our movies and television. When was the last time you saw an action movie where
the hero drove the speed limit, didn’t trespass, and turned himself in for a
crime?
I loved your post! I agree that we have more a Thucydides style view of the law. Plato talked about how injury or retaliation for evil is never okay, it's still evil. But so often our media portrays people going above the law or taking their own revenge as heroes or cool people. But I agree with Plato's thinking that in a free society, men can either agree with and follow the laws, or disagree with them and either move or try to change the laws. Unfortunately I feel like many members of our society don't think or care about the law until it inconveniences them.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read your last paragraph I couldn't stop thinking of that TV show, "I Almost Got Away With It". I agree, I do think people care more about almost getting away with breaking the law than actually holding up to it. People don't respect the laws the way the Greeks did in ancient times. There are very few people who openly confess to their crimes and accept punishment. Now, most people take their quarrels to court, lie, cheat, blackmail, etc. to "Almost Get Away With It", but usually the law wins. I liked your post.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that we hold our laws in less regard than the Greeks did theirs. I don't know many people who would say what Socrates did and stand by his or her government's decision to execute them. Often times we are not as happy with our laws and do not think of them as something good, but only as something that hinders. Maybe its because many Americans do not have as much pride in their country as the Greeks did.
ReplyDeleteI like the way that you put how the Greeks followed the word of the law, not the spirit of it like we Americans do. It was more important to Socrates to die rather than break his country's laws. For him, the law of the country was hallowed ground. I wish that more of us today could have that same vigor of obeying the law.
ReplyDeleteI don't quite agree with your thoughts on our society today. I believe that although some laws are disregarded (like speeding in Utah), that the majority are respected by the population. Although pop culture may not portray American society in this way, those who disregard the law are an extreme minority comparative to most other countries today, and probably also compared to ancient Greece. Rule of Law does reign in the world today, even if the news spends most of the time reporting about those who ignore it.
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