Poine: a study in ancient Greek blood-vengeanceTreston, Hubert Joseph
History
Poine: a study in ancient Greek blood-vengeance
Treston, Hubert Joseph
Criminal law (Greek law); Greece -- Civilization; Greek drama (Tragedy) -- History and criticism; Homicide (Greek law); Vendetta
mind the law suggests the illegality of ‘private settlement’ rather
than the abolition of wergeld! Glotz, moreover, seems to ignore the
Demosthenic references to a γραφὴ ἀσεβείας, an indictment for impiety,
which could be brought against the relatives of a slain person if they
did not prosecute the slayer. We need not dwell upon the importance of
a γραφὴ in Attic law. It denoted a most important species of public
accusation, similar to our modern indictments or impeachments. Human
nature being what it is, and Greek human nature being what it was,
can we conceive that a Greek would have omitted to propose a ‘private
settlement’ if it had been legal for him to do so, as an option for
prosecution? Can we conceive that prosecutions for homicide would ever
have occurred if such an option would have freed the relatives of
the slain from liability to a charge of impiety which involved their
banishment and the confiscation of their property? We must then rather
assume that the guilt of impiety would have been still incurred if the
relatives of the slain accepted ‘settlement’ and failed to prosecute.
Glotz makes no reference to the γραφὴ ἀσεβείας. We agree with him[282]
that there was no γραφὴ φόνου in Attic law, but we do not understand
why he should credit Solon with the institution of γραφαί for ὕβρις and
κάκωσις, but omit to mention ἀσέβεια. The indictment for impiety, which
we attribute to Solon,[283] is incompatible with ‘private settlement’
for homicide, which Glotz believes to have been legal in the days of
Demosthenes as in those of Solon. Let us see what Demosthenes has to say
of this indictment.
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