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Re: Lou's response to stjame's post-ADUL

Posted by shar on August 20, 2003, at 22:42:13

In reply to Lou's response to stjame's post-ADUL » stjames, posted by Lou Pilder on August 20, 2003, at 19:35:06

> stjames,
> The idea of defamation in the history of the worls involved adultery. The masterpiece of Nathanal Hawthorn, 'The Scarlet Letter", shows some of this. Adultery then was considered a horrible crime. So to accused falsly of such damaged the reputation of the one accused falsely.
> The defamation laws were formed to punish that type of defamation. So horrible was adultery, that it was considered the great shame.
> The ancient Isrealites stoned to death adulterers, so a false accusation of such carried a huge punishment later in history. Adulterers are still beheaded in some Islamic countries.
> Lou

Just thought I'd point out, as an aside, it was usually women that were punished more severely (or punished at all) for adultery, based (often) on the word of the husband. The same goes for the millions of women who died (before cures were available) from venereal diseases because "men were just being men" and that was just how it was.

Certainly, men died, too, but the wives were no longer acceptable as part of polite society, often having done nothing more than their 'duties' to their husbands.

While I could write so very, very much more on this topic (women being stoned to death because they were in public without an appropriate male escort), I will restrain myself.

Thus, as far as defamation is concerned, it was more likely to fall on the female (who mattered less anyway) than the male.

One minor point, was Hester Prynne defamed, or was she punished for breaking a law? Her pregnancy was evidence she could not conceal as far as her "crime" was concerned, so she really did have sex (with Dimmesdale who was too chicken to take his medicine), and received a punishment appropriate for that day and time (tho' Dimmesdale could have lessened her suffering significantly had he been an honest man). So, is being found guilty of any crime the same as defamation?

Shar


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