BRIBERY IN CLASSICAL ATHENS Kellam ... - Historia Antigua
BRIBERY IN CLASSICAL ATHENS Kellam ... - Historia Antigua BRIBERY IN CLASSICAL ATHENS Kellam ... - Historia Antigua
Conover Bribery in Classical Athens Introduction decided never to give anyone dōra again (Dem. 19.137). While we might take Demosthenes’ words with a grain of salt, it is significant that an Athenian like Demosthenes viewed the law’s deterrent effect in terms of bribe-givers, not bribe-takers. At the very least, we should reconsider our assumption that the law was intended primarily to deter potential bribe-takers. Second, it is also significant that, at least in Plutarch’s account, Timagoras weighs his decision not in terms of the letter of the law— i.e. what the law actually says—but in terms of the law in action. He recalls how Epicrates happily took dōra and went unpunished, and it was this purported legal result, rather than the law itself, that influenced his own decision. Accordingly, Chapters Five through Seven show that, in order to understand why the Athenians created the specific anti-dōrodokia legislation that they did, we need to move beyond thinking about the law solely in terms of deterrence. Chapter Five develops a theoretical framework for examining Athenian legislation on dōrodokia. In particular, it focuses on the ways in which such legislation ‘translated’ the figure of the dōrodokos into a legal entity. This framework will then be used, in Chapter Six, to trace a legal history of dōrodokia: both the kinds of legal spaces created for dōrodokia, and how those spaces were used to articulate ‘democratic’ legal and political institutions. Finally, Chapter Seven considers the function of those laws and legal processes in action, specifically how dōrodokia trials might be used not only to educate Athenians in civic values, but even to legitimate policies, political processes, and even political players. Given the sheer number of attested dōrodokia trials as well as the extensive breadth and depth of reforms geared towards dōrodokia, this legal history provides us with a uniquely detailed look at the changing relationship between law and society at 23
Conover Bribery in Classical Athens Introduction Athens throughout the democracy. As the second half of the dissertation shows, in the same way as the dōrodokos was articulated in opposition to the good democratic citizen, the Athenians used the dōrodokos in law to think through what ‘democratic’ institutions and legal processes should look like. We find, then, a complex process of norm articulation whereby legal and institutional changes both reflected and influenced social norms governing the dōrodokos. In particular, picking up on the idea of bribery as an alternate trajectory for the democracy, these chapters suggest that the Athenians actively sought to create a political space in which the power of bribery as a distinct mode of politics could be leveraged for the good of the democracy. The Athenians took seriously the idea that political outcomes were neither good nor bad until they were so legitimated (or delegitimized) by the people. And one prominent way to legitimate outcomes was through dōrodokia trials. Hence, the reason why the Athenians killed dōrodokoi like Timagoras often had more to do with this process of legitimization than with any inherent desire to deter dōrodokia. There are numerous areas of Athenian political practice that will always be frustratingly beyond our reach. How often were dōra given with the explicit intent of changing an official’s mind? Were dōra given and received only within the context of pre-existing relations, or were one-off bribes also common? What were the real-life political and economic effects of undeniable cases of dōrodokia? These are big questions for any account of bribery. As often, even in modern case-studies, they will regrettably be left unanswered. For a host of reasons, there is no systematic way to gather evidence on bribery, ancient or modern, including records of bribes received or testimonies of the parties involved. The Athenian case, though frustratingly incomplete, might nevertheless 24
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Conover Bribery in Classical Athens Introduction<br />
decided never to give anyone dōra again (Dem. 19.137). While we might take<br />
Demosthenes’ words with a grain of salt, it is significant that an Athenian like<br />
Demosthenes viewed the law’s deterrent effect in terms of bribe-givers, not bribe-takers.<br />
At the very least, we should reconsider our assumption that the law was intended<br />
primarily to deter potential bribe-takers. Second, it is also significant that, at least in<br />
Plutarch’s account, Timagoras weighs his decision not in terms of the letter of the law—<br />
i.e. what the law actually says—but in terms of the law in action. He recalls how<br />
Epicrates happily took dōra and went unpunished, and it was this purported legal result,<br />
rather than the law itself, that influenced his own decision.<br />
Accordingly, Chapters Five through Seven show that, in order to understand why<br />
the Athenians created the specific anti-dōrodokia legislation that they did, we need to<br />
move beyond thinking about the law solely in terms of deterrence. Chapter Five<br />
develops a theoretical framework for examining Athenian legislation on dōrodokia. In<br />
particular, it focuses on the ways in which such legislation ‘translated’ the figure of the<br />
dōrodokos into a legal entity. This framework will then be used, in Chapter Six, to trace<br />
a legal history of dōrodokia: both the kinds of legal spaces created for dōrodokia, and<br />
how those spaces were used to articulate ‘democratic’ legal and political institutions.<br />
Finally, Chapter Seven considers the function of those laws and legal processes in action,<br />
specifically how dōrodokia trials might be used not only to educate Athenians in civic<br />
values, but even to legitimate policies, political processes, and even political players.<br />
Given the sheer number of attested dōrodokia trials as well as the extensive<br />
breadth and depth of reforms geared towards dōrodokia, this legal history provides us<br />
with a uniquely detailed look at the changing relationship between law and society at<br />
23
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