Ordeals
"An economic vindication of ancient Indian "nonsense
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2777967 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Harald Wiese (0000-0002-7881-0308, Leipzig University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 79 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 513-534 |
| Publication date | 2016-10-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0041-977X • E-ISSN: 1474-0699 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0041977x16000550 |
| OpenAlex | W2514161959 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 5 |
Ordeals (by fire, by water, etc.) are a judicial institution in which defendants try to prove their innocence by divine judgement. In a recent law and economics paper, Leeson (2012) suggests that (medieval) ordeals "work" because, and if, ordeal takers have sufficient belief in them and because the priests administering ordeals "manipulate" them in an appropriate manner. We find that Leeson's theory also helps us understand Indian ordeals. Interestingly, some dharma texts require that the accuser agrees to the ordeal too, a requirement absent in Leeson's theory. We extend Leesons's model accordingly
Innocence · Judgement · Political science · Sociology · Trial by ordeal · American Constitutional Law and Politics · Historical Economic and Legal Thought · Historical Economic and Social Studies · Law · Philosophy
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,2 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2021 (1) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |