Social relations on stage

Witnesses in classical Athens

Bibliographic Data

ID2156019
AuthorsSally Humphrey (0000-0002-4397-6404, University College London, corresponding author), Sally Humphreys (corresponding author)
Year1985
Volume1
Issue2
Pages313-369
Publication date1985-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueHistory and Anthropology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0275-7206 • E-ISSN: 1477-2612
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/02757206.1985.9960746
OpenAlexW2070041714
LanguageEN
Citations received64
References cited76

The study of witness testimony raises questions which are fundamental for the student of other cultures, whether past or contemporary. What are the standards expected of a reliable informant and how is reliability to be recognised? How is reliable knowledge about the past established? The aim of this paper is to analyse the use of witnesses in classical Athenian lawcourts both for its epistemological implications — what does it tell us about Athenian ideas of 'expert witnesses', of reliability, of truthfulness and bias — and for the information it gives us about Athenian society and court practice. What kind of men did Athenian litigants select to act as witnesses for them, and what effect did they hope their witnesses' testimonies would have on the jury? If we start out from the assumption of modern courts that witnesses are called to 'establish the facts of the case' we shall misunderstand the Athenian data. What witnesses actually testified often was not very important: their testimonies might be insignificant, irrelevant or repetitive. To understand their role it is necessary to see them as minor characters in a drama, whose presence provides the backdrop against which the litigant wishes his own actions and character to be seen. Respectable witnesses — officials, members of the 'professions', reputable politicians — establish his own respectability. The support of neighbours, associates and kin shows that those who know the milieu in which the dispute arose are on the litigant's side. Denigration Of the opponent's witnesses, kin and associates presents him as a vicious and unreliable character. In the construction of a character‐portrait in court witnesses had an important role to play

Genealogy · Stage (stratigraphy · Classical Antiquity Studies · History · Law in Society and Culture · Legal Education and Practice Innovations · Geology · Paleontology

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub