The law has always been part of society's means of controlling its own members and codifying which behaviours are expected and which are not. The following are a few examples of laws that were made to clarify the rules about social behaviour:
1. Jactitation - the crime of false boasting or bragging to someone else's detriment. This is no longer against the law, as anyone who watches reality television can attest.
2. Barratry - the crime of frequently causing quarrels and/or law suits. Again, this is no longer a crime. We do still have a general rule about "frivolous and vexatious" lawsuits which often results in the loser of a malicious or ridiculous lawsuit paying costs to the other party.
3. Cucking stool - a woman who was considered a nag or scold was publicly placed on a stool which was dunked into the local river. Of course this is no longer acceptable.
4. Legenita - I suppose that if there is a specific law to control women's behaviour, there is bound to be one applying to male behaviour. Legenita was a fine that was levied against a man who had "criminal conversation" with a woman. "Criminal conversation" is a euphemism for extra-marital sex.
5. Corium forisfacere - another obsolete (fortunately) term that refers to punishing servants who misbehave by whipping them. The term is latin, and translates as "to forfeit one's skin".
1. Jactitation - the crime of false boasting or bragging to someone else's detriment. This is no longer against the law, as anyone who watches reality television can attest.
2. Barratry - the crime of frequently causing quarrels and/or law suits. Again, this is no longer a crime. We do still have a general rule about "frivolous and vexatious" lawsuits which often results in the loser of a malicious or ridiculous lawsuit paying costs to the other party.
3. Cucking stool - a woman who was considered a nag or scold was publicly placed on a stool which was dunked into the local river. Of course this is no longer acceptable.
4. Legenita - I suppose that if there is a specific law to control women's behaviour, there is bound to be one applying to male behaviour. Legenita was a fine that was levied against a man who had "criminal conversation" with a woman. "Criminal conversation" is a euphemism for extra-marital sex.
5. Corium forisfacere - another obsolete (fortunately) term that refers to punishing servants who misbehave by whipping them. The term is latin, and translates as "to forfeit one's skin".
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