PSYC 331 : Lecture Study Questions.docx
Document Summary
History of the trial central legal themes of hammurabi"s code: Innocence until proven guilty: prosecution and defense of the accused, penalties for false-accusations. What was radical about aeshylus"s portrayal of orestes" trial: he suggested human honesty was equal to the gods" wisdom. If people tell truth, we can judge them without first appealing to gods. What two competing ideas about justice began in the 5th century: mens rea the guilty mind. Crime is not crime without intent: actus reus the act is also important because some crimes are too heinous to go unpunished. How does that play out in today"s courts: putting forward points that are truthy even if not absolutely true. What was the purpose of laws developed in justinian"s rome: to get rid of vigilante revenge. What is the original essence of an oath: a pledge to the gods. If the gods knew an oath to be false, he would fail the ordeal.
