Flight and Freedom in the Ancient Near East (Culture and History of the Ancient Near East)

106 Pages·2001·7.06 MB·English

by  Daniel C. Snell

CULTURE AND HISTORY OF
FLIGHT AND FREEDOM
THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST
IN THE ANCIENT NEAR EAS1
EDITEDBY
BY
B. HALPERN, M.H.E. WEIPPERT
TH. PJ. VANDEN HOUT, I. WINTER
DANIEL C. SNELL
VOLUME~
BRILL
LEIDEN .BOSTON'KOLN
2001
This bookisprintedonacid-freepaper.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Snell, DanielC.
Flightand freedom inthe ancientNear East / byDanielC. Snell.
p. cm.-(Cultureand history of the ancientNearEast, ISSN 1566-2055 ;v.8)
Includesbibliographicalreferences and index.
ISBN 9004120106(alk.paper)
1. Liberty-History. 2. Humanrights-Middle East-History. 3. Forcedlabor
MiddleEast-History. 4. Government, Resistanceto-Middle East-History. 5. Middle
East-History-To622. I.Title. II. Series
]C599.M53S652001
323.44'0939'4--dc21 00-066729 For Jamesand Abigail
CIP
DieDeutscheBibliothek- CIP-Einheitsaufnalune May the basicassumptionbe freedom.
Snell,DanielC.:
Flightandfreedom inthe ancientNearEast / byDanielC.Snell.
Leiden;Boston;Koln :Brill,2001
(Culture and historyor theancient Ncar East;Vol.8)
ISBN90-04-120I0-6
)e
50,'
.ti:;35C?s
ISSN 1566-2055
~o, ISBN 9004120106
©Copyright2001byKoninklijkeBrillNV,Leiden, TheNetherlands
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CONTENTS
Contents vii
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
Chapter1TheHistoryofFreedomandGettingAway 11
WordsforFreedomintheAncientNearEast.. 19
A.Edicts 21
B.Privileges 24
C.Manumissions 26
D.RowdilyBehavingGroups 27
Chapter2TheRealityofFlight... 31
1.TheNatureofArchivalTexts 33
2.ComparativeAbsenteeism 37
3.RunawaySlavesinClassicalTimes 38
4.RunawaySlavesintheAmericas .40
5.EarlyMesopotamianEscape .46
6.UrIIIEscape 48
7.OidBabylonianEscape 55
8.MiddleBabylonianEscape .58
9.Neo-BabylonianEscape 60
Chapter3TheIdeologyofFlightandFreedom 63
1.Edicts 63
2.LegalCollections 74
3.Treaties 86
Chapter4 FlightinLiteratureandStory 99
1.Non-NarrativeTexts 99
2.FlightNarratives 104
3.Conclusions 115
Chapter5 FreedominIsrael... 117
1.Terminology 122
2.PracticeinNarratives 126
3.LegalCollections 129
Chapter6 FreedomBeyondMesopotamiansandGreeks 137
1.Are TraditionsaUnity? 138
2.DescentAmongJews 140
viii CONTENTS
3.DescentAmongGreeksandChristians 144
4.DescentAmongMuslims 146
5.TowardADefinition 148
'6.WhatIstheWest? 152
7.FreedomandtheNon-West... 154
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
AppendixISelectedArchivalTextsonEscape 157
AppendixII Transliterations ofSelectedLegal, Treaty,
This study grew out ofmy work onLife in theAncientNear East, a
andCanonicalTextsonFreedomandEscape 171
socialandeconomichistory,and theinstitutionsthat supportedme in
Bibliography 179
that endeavor must be thanked also in this one, particularly the
Index 193
University ofOklahoma in its Senior Faculty Summer Fellowship
AncientNearEasternTextsCited 199
program, now discontinued, and its sabbatical leave program. A
BiblicalTextsCited 200
National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar in 1993
underProf. PhilipCurtinat Johns HopkinsUniversitystimulatedmy
thinking on this topic, and to Prof. Curtin and my colleagues in the
seminarloweadebtofgratitudeforbibliographyandencouragement.
InparticularRosemaryBrana-ShuteoftheCollegeofCharlestonwas
helpful inasking invigorating questions.
List ofTables
The Oregon Humanities Center at the University of Oregon in
Eugene awarded me a summer fellowship in the summer of 1996
UrIIIMonthsofEscape 53
whichprovedextremelyhelpfulinmy delvinginto bibliographyand
UrIIIGenderofEscapees 53
in beginning to write. The Institute for Advanced Studies in the
LawsonRunaways 85
HumanitiesattheUniversityofEdinburghofferedmeanon-stipendi
TreatmentofFugitivesinHittiteDiplomaticTexts 93
ary fellowship for part ofthe summerof1997 whichallowed me to
complete the preliminary draft. The staffofOtterbein College was
veryhelpfultomeinthefinal stages ofthework.ProfessorsBenjamin
Foster,DavidGeggus,AlanKimball,MarioLiverani,RichardLowitt,
HelgaMadland,PaulMinnis, RobertNye, and Jamil Ragep gave me
helpful references and technical advice. My graduate studentLance
Allredreadthemanuscriptand gavemeseveral valuablesuggestions.
We cannotblamehim for errors, though, can we?
My family has been supportive ofmy work and my wanderings,
preferringwhenpossibletocomealong, andtheadventurestheyhave
had are their own reward. In particular Dr. Katie Barwick-Snell
sloggedthrough all this withme. Butbecause ofthe implications of
thestudy forthefuture thattheywillinherit,Idedicatetheworktomy
children, Jamesand Abigail, and to the childrenofthe world.
-DCS
Was mag der Staatauchbei denAssyrem,Babyloniem,Persemusw.
Allesgetanhaben,urndasAufkommendesIndividuellenzuverhind
em,welchesdamalsfursoviel alsdasBosegegoltenhabenwird?Der
hochstenWahrscheinlichkeitnachhatesanallen Enden,baldda,bald
dort, emporkommenwollen und ist den burgerlichen und religiosen
Schranken, Kasteneinrichtungen usw. erlegen, ohne eine Spur
hinterlassenzu konnen.
--JacobBurckhardt, WeltgeschichtlicheBetrachtungen.New
York: Amo, 1979,65.
What could the state have done also among the Assyrians, Babylo
nians, Persians, and so forth, to hinder the individual's rise, which
then countedforthe same thingasevil? Inall likelihoodafterallthe
individualwishedtoarise,nowhere,nowthere,butwaskilledbycivil
and religious barriers, caste regulations and so forth, without being
able to leave atrace behind.
INTRODUCTION
ThesymbolofthecityofAleppo,theancientnorthernculturalcenter
inSyria,istheCitadel,amedieval fortwithafancymoatedentrance.
Onthetop ofthatentrancethe government inthe 1980sdisplayed in
neon lights the governing party's motto-unity, socialism, and
freedom.
InSyriathemeaningsofthesetermshaveevolvedsomewhatover
time, but everyone would agree that in the popular mind the least
clearlydefined ofthethreeisfreedom. Since Syriawas inthepasta
Sovietclient,freedomhasnot alwaysincluded economic freedom as
it is understood in the United States and Western Europe, though
recently that has increasingly become an aspect of it. Freedom
probably does imply for Syrians freedom from want and freedom
from unwarranted official interference-though practice has not
always measureduptoideals, inSyria aselsewhere.
TheCitadelatnightwas illuminated,anditwas quiteasightwith
itsneonmotto. Onecanimagineamorehistoricallyaccuratewayof
highlighting the structure, but the government had its reasons, and
freedom had itssway.
Formethissightunderlinestheproblemoffreedominthemodem
world. The appeal of freedom obviously extends beyond those
countries which regard themselves now as part ofthe West, those
countries that have devised their political traditions from a century
and more of liberalism, which onemight define asthe devotion to
freedom.
The study ofthehistory offreedomhasbecomeidentifiedwith a
certain political stance in Western politics, one that celebrates
Western understandings of freedom and condemns, for example,
Communistunderstandings thatmightbeclosertothatofthe Syrian
government's. Students ofthe history offreedom have tended to
search for the roots ofWestern freedom in the ancient history of
2 INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION 3
GreeceandRomeandhavearguedthatGreecegavebirthtoaunique detailsofBernal'sclaimsabouttheauthenticityoftheancientGreek
setofattitudesthatledtoand,toagreatextent,wereidenticaltoour understandingoftheculturalborrowings?
own.Thispedigree,however,cannotexplainthephenomenaof1989, MaterialfromancientMesopotamia,ancientsouthernIraq,allows
inwhichnotonlytheCommunistEastEuropeanworldfellapartin onetosuggestsomethingmoreradical,thattheGreekunderstanding
adevotiontoamorerecognizablyWestern-styledfreedom, butalso offreedomwasnotauniqueandmiraculousphenomenon,butone
ChinaandBurma,culturesmorelightlytouchedbyWesternvalues, thatcanbeparalleledelsewhere. Iamnotpreparedto surveyevery
sawmovementsarisethataffirmedapopulardedicationtofreedom.' knowncultureandlanguagegroup,nordoI thinkthatsuchaneffort
Isthisphenomenontobe explainedby thediffusionofWestern wouldbehelpful. RatherIwishtopursueatestcaseinsomedetail
values in centuriesofcontact? Or is it to be understood as the becauseagreatdealisknownaboutMesopotamia.
welling up of autochthonous notions about human freedom? The material we have from Mesopotamia that bears on the
Naturallythe answerstothesequestions in the casesofChinaand problemisoftwosorts. On theonehandisanabundantrecordof
Burmamustbe givenby specialists inthemodernhistoryofthose state-sponsoredlabor,perhapsusuallyataxonlaborthatweidentify
areas.Andthoseanswersmaynotcomeformanyyears,until,asone with the corvee, the obligationto work several days a month on
hopes,eventually archivesareopenedandscholarship on sensitive government-organizedprojects.' In thatrecordflight fromwork is
questionscanbe pursued. In the meantimeI believean important recorded, andthisappearsto indicate thatthestatesystem wasnot
parallelquestionisposedin ancienthistory,which,luckily,weare abletoretainallthelaborersitwantedtocontrol. Inadvertentlythe
quitefreetoinvestigatewithoutmodernpoliticalinterference. governmental scribes recorded their own failure, but they also
If freedom in the Western sense arose only once, in Classical showedthatsomeilliterateindividuals, calledupontoparticipatein
Greece,itwouldbepartoftheso-calledGreekmiracle,whichsome thestate-laborsystem,resistedatleastbyrunningaway.
scholarsseeastheunprecedenteddevelopment ofart,philosophy, Modernhistoriansnowadaysseektogivevoicetothepreviously
drama, and poetry leading more or less directly to us. Martin voicelessastheytrytouncoverwomen'shistoryandthehistoriesof
Bernal's work seekingthe background to thesedevelopments in minority groups in America and elsewhere. The flight of
EgyptandWesternAsiadoesnotcallintoquestiontheexistenceof Mesopotamianworkersprovestobeafruitful topicofinvestigation
themiracle;itmerelychangestheacceptedpedigree,andClassicists that edges us toward an understanding of a devotionto freedom
seem opento this adjustment, eventhoughtheymostlyrejectthe amongtheilliterateandoppressed.
Thebest evidence comesfromtheDr III period(2112to 2004
RC.E.), but thereis importantinformation fromotherperiodstoo.
2 Martin Bernal, Black Athena, 1, (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press,
1987), and the symposiuminArethusa 1989. Ihave benefittedfrom discussions on
! Asanexample ofGreek-centerednessinsuchstudies,seeSusanFord Wiltshire,
Greece and Rome and the Bill ofRights, (Norman: University ofOklahoma Press, Bernal'sattitudeswithmycolleagueProf.JamilRagep.MarioLiverani,"TheBathwater
andtheBaby,"inBlackAthena Revisited,edited byMary R.Lefkowitzand Guy M.
1992),9,whowrites,"TheearliestoriginsoftheBillofRightslieinClassicalAthens,
Rogers, 421-427,(ChapelHill: UniversityofNorth Carolina Press, 1996),points out
foritwastheancientGreekswhoinventedtherevolutionaryideathathumanbeingsare
alsothatforBernaltheGreekMiracleisnotincompatiblewithExOrienteLux,bothof
capableofgoverningthemselvesthrough laws oftheir own making." She does not
which areEurocentric.
examinetheAncientNearEastatall.
By focusing onSyriaIdonotmean toimply that TurkeyorSaudi Arabia, orthe 3ItisofinterestthatEnglishnowusesaFrenchwordforthis,fromLatincorrogiire
UnitedStates,alwaysmanagetoadheretointernationalstandardsinfostering freedom. "to requisition";seeOxfordEnglishDictionaryC: 1028.
4 INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION 5
Oneaspectofthesetextsmustbestressedat theoutset: theywere ofitshypotenuse. Mesopotamian scribesknewthatfactintheOld
composedbybureaucratsforbureaucrats. Theyhavenopropaganda Babylonianperiod,amillenniumbeforePythagoras. Buttheydidnot
valueand arepreserved onlyto makesurethatthe rationsforthe stateit as Ihavejust done,asa general rule. Insteadtheydemon
absentworkers wereproperlyallocated, ornotallocated. Thegoal strated through numerous examples of individual instanceshowit
wasinventorycontrol,notcondemnationorrestorationofescapees, worked. Thishabitofmindmayseemalien, butitleadsdirectlyto
though both of thesematters were probablyon the minds ofthe thescienceofmakinglistsofphenomenasotypicalofMesopotamian
scribes. thinking andakinto our desire for encyclopedias ofeach areaof
ThesecondsortofMesopotamianmaterialisthatderiving from endeavor. Thelistsofomenswereprobablythemostpopularamong
kings' propagandamachinesandfoundusuallyintheformofroyal Mesopotamianscribesthemselves,butthelaw"codes"andthelexical
inscriptions. These obviously were composed with a view to textstoo mustbe understood as listsof examples fromwhichthe
influencingpublicopinion,thoughitremainsaquestionhowwidely studentsmightdrawconclusions. ItmaybethatintheMesopotamian
theyreallywerediffused,andwhowouldhaveheardthemread,orif oraltraditiontherewasacustomofgeneralizationinordertomake
anyone did. Perhaps in some periods they constituted merely a short-cuts for the students, but it may also be that the lists were
touchstone of the partylinewithwhich government supporters thoughtofascoursesinvariousaspectsofknowledge,andthestrong
wouldbeexpectedtobefamiliar. Andyetassuchtheyarevaluable students wouldnot expectanyhandy,andnecessarily superficial,
windowsontotheintellectual landscape of someoftheMesopota generalization."
mianelite. Like the Greeks, our own tendency is to attemptto verbalize
Theseroyalinscriptions speakof freedom as something estab regularities. BrunoSnellinafamous examplearguedthatthepower
lishedbykingsforthegeneralbenefitoftheirsubjects. Asweshall ofGreekthoughtderivedtoalargeextentfromtheirabilitytoputa
see,whatexactlythismeansis a vexedquestionthat is not easily definite article in front ofanything, andthusto haveanounabout
wv
answered. But atveryleastwe canseethatsomeMesopotamians whichtheycouldgeneralize, forexample'to ''the(phenomenon
wereconcernedwithwordsthatcanbetranslatedasfreedom. of)being."? Wemaynowdoubtifgrammar alonedefines sucha
Wehavetheninformationfromtwosortsoftexts andnotalways cultural style, but we are the heirs of Herodotus, who sought to
fromthe sameperiods ofMesopotamian cultural life. Therewas generalizeabouteverythingthathesaw.Asweattempttounderstand
writinginMesopotamiaasearlyas3100RC.E., andthelastdatable Mesopotamian sources, we must also forego the desirefor essays
textcomesfrom74ofourera. Overthisvasttimeconditions and
attitudes changed, and ideas about freedom were probably not
everywhereuniform. Such stabilityisunlikelyfromwhatweknow
4 Discussions in the summer of 1996 with Prof. Robert Nye ofOregon State
ofhowsocietieschange.
University werehelpfulinclarifying theinterestinthismatterformystudy.Compare
OneaspectofMesopotamianculturethatoughttobeemphasized Wolfram Von Soden, Leistung und Grenze sumerischer und babylonischer
attheoutsetandthatwillmakeourtaskmoredifficultandtheresults Wissenschaft,(Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1965), and his The
AncientOrient,(GrandRapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1994),145-148.
moreambiguousthanwemightlikeisthatMesopotamiansdisliked
5 Bruno Snell, TheDiscoveryoftheMind, (NewYork: Harper andRow, 1960),
generalizing. Whythisshouldbeisnotknown,butthecontrasttothe
227-230. CompareG.E.R.Lloyd, TheRevolutionsofWisdom. StudiesintheClaims
Greeksis obvious. Thegreatexample of theMesopotamians' not andPracticeofAncientGreekScience,(Berkeley, LosAngeles,London:Universityof
generalizing istheirmasteryoftheso-calledPythagoreantheorem, CaliforniaPress, 1987),58,admitting Snellmustbetreatedwithreservebutasserting
ariseofegotismamongGreeks,and"acertain gulf,"presumably inintellectualstyle,
thatthesquareofthesidesofarighttriangleisthesameasthesquare
between Athensontheonehand andBabyloniaandEgyptontheother, 102.
INTRODUCTION 7
6 INTRODUCTION
InMesopotamiatooitispossiblethattherewasaliteratureofdissent
frompersonalexperiencesuchasHerodotus'fellowssometimesgave
thatsomescribesproducedonperishablematerials. ButinIsraelthis
us. TheproblemswithsuchGreektextsareasacuteasthosewiththe
literature became something treasured in dissident groups, and
Mesopotamiantexts,but different,sinceintheGreekmodewehave
becauseofthefalloftheIsraelitepolities,thosegroupsweretheonly
lotsofgeneralizationsbutnoeasywaytochecktheirveracity. And
oneswhosurvivedantiquity. Theirwrittentraditionscomedownto
intheMesopotamianwehavelotsofdatabutnoeasywaytoseehow
usbecausetheywerecopiedontootherperishablematerialwhenthey
theymayhavebeeninterpretedbytheculture,orevenbyitsliterate
beganto fall apart," ThismeansthattheHebrewBibleapproachto
members.
problemsofrunawaysis likelytobe moresympatheticandnuanced
Even within the Western tradition, of course, there may be
thantheMesopotamiansources.
traditionsthatapproachtheMesopotamianmorethanthecontempo
These differences in approach betweenthe HebrewBible and
raryAmerican doesin its approach to generalization. I remember
beingtold whilestudying Russianthatone shouldexpectthatthe Mesopotamiantextsoughtnotto force ustotakesidesanddeclare
modeofargumentwouldbethatSovietthinkerswouldtendtopile thesuperiorityoftheBibleinhumanenessorsomeotheraspectthat
upmanyrelevant examples andonlyatthe endofan essaywould wemightadmirenow. Inevitablywearegoingtofeelmorekinship
theystatetheconclusiontowhichtheyhadbeenarguingallalong. fortheHebrewBibleviewjustbecauseithasbeenpartofourown
culture. Butratherwe must seek to evaluate evidence fromeach
TotheAmericanthatapproachseemedlikestackingthedeckwithout
cultureonitsownmerits,realizinginIsraelthattheremusthavebeen
explainingwhereonewasgoing. Wearefrequentlytoofarremoved
arelativelycogentroyalorrulingclassviewaswellasotherdissident
fromMesopotamianissuestoseewheretheargumentwasgoing,if
it was goingin one direction. And yet the Mesopotamians were viewsthatdidnotmakeit intothewrittentradition thathascome
sometimeslavishwiththeirindividualinstances,andwegeneralizers downtous. WemustrealizetoothatMesopotamiamayhaveknown
variousdissidenttraditions,mostprobablyusuallyoral,whichwould
willwanttospinatalefromthemaswecan.
InthecourseofthisstudywewillalsobeusingtheHebrewBible, havehadaverydifferenttakeonthematterswewilldiscussthanthe
theChristianOldTestament,andthoughitismorefamiliartousthan royallysponsoredtexts. Neitherculturewasmonolithic, andtaking
Mesopotamiantexts,weoughttobearinmindoneaspectofitthat them together may give us a richness of understanding of the
phenomena which otherwise would be unavailable; still, it is
will be especially important for our understanding of escaping
importantnottoassume thatwecanreadin Israel'srecordexactly
laborers and attitudes towardfreedom. The Mesopotamian texts
what lower-class Mesopotamians thought or that we can read in
comeforthemostpartfromroyalofficesandreflecttheideasofthe
Mesopotamia'stheexactideasofIsrael'srulers.
rulers and the ruling classes. Rarelydo we hear ofrebellion or
disruption thatwouldreflectillonthoseclasses. Theexception is My epigraph from Burckhardt raises questions that ought to
remainopen,but Burckhardt, forallhissubtlety, assumedamono
runningawaysincetherewereeconomicimplicationstotheabsence
ofworkers, andresponsibilityhadtobeallotted, notfor lettingthe lithicOrientaldespotismwecannolongerclaimtofindinthetexts.
workersescapebutforthefoodtheywouldhaveconsumedhadthey He assumed thatpersons more or less likethe nineteenth-century
been onthejob astheyshouldhavebeen. TheBible,in contrast, individuals he knewwere occasionally attempting to assert them-
comesmostlyfrompeoplewhodidnotworkforkingsbutstillhad
accesstoliteracy. Toanextentthisdifferencemayderivefromthe
factthattheBiblewaswrittenonephemeral things, mostlyparch
6 OntheentireprocessseeMortonSmith,Palestinian Parties and Politics That
ment,andnotonlong-lastingclaytabletsorotherpermanentmedia. ShapedtheOldTestament,(NewYork:Columbia,197I).
8 INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION 9
selves against states that resembled those he knew. Now we are My purposeinferretingoutevidenceaboutattitudestoward freedom
inclined to keep open the definitions ofboth ofthese concepts, the is not to write a political history of a key term or to abstract an
individual andthestate. Instudying ideasabout freedom wemaybe essence ofMesopotamian or Israelite attitudes. Rather I seek to
directly addressing that relationship betweenthe individual and the fulfillthree goals:
state or community and seeing how the individual did sometimes First,to seeexactlyhow eludingauthorityworkedontheground,
assertherselfandhowthestatesometimesasserteditselfandmadeits includingwhowas involved andwhat thebureaucraticresponsetoit
representatives act according to policy. We may not succeed at a was;
redefinition ofeither individual or state, but perhaps we will alert Second, to see what the elite understandings of freedom and
othersto the problems ofdefinitions in the ancientand the modem escape were;
worlds. There isno question but that Greek-centeredhistorians are Andthird,toseehow theescapeeexperiencemighthave affected
stillhappytoendorseBurckhardt'sidea,thatthestatesarisinginthe the eliteunderstanding, especially in the firstmillenniumRCE.
AncientNear East soughtto suppress thefreedom ofthe individual. In the first chapter we will survey earlier views ofthe history of
Butis this view tenable? We shall see. freedom andthenturntothevocabulary offreedominthelanguages
Much ofwhat we discuss here is well known to students ofthe ofthe Ancient Near East. In the second chapter we will explore
Ancient Near East, although they have not tried to tease out the flight in Mesopotamia, highlighting suggestive texts. Then in the
implicationsofitforthehistory offreedom. Still,Ibelie~ethat they thirdchapterwewillstudytheideologyoffreedomamongelites,and
will see avenues for further research opened up by the questions I we will try in the fourth chapterto examine flight in literature and
pose, and they may see their work in a different light as a result of narrative.ThefifthchaptertumstoIsrael'sinterestingandsometimes
this study. Ihaveheard itsaidthat some ofuschoose these byways abnormalapproachtothequestionoffreedom.Inthefinalchapterwe
ofscholarship because we donot want toconfront issuesthat might shall return to the legacy of freedom in Western culture and the
be relevant tocurrentpolicies, andcertainlythereismuchimportant possibilitythat the kernels offreedom arevery widespread.
work to be done that has less obvious modem implications. It These goals may be difficult to achieve, and even ifwe achieve
appears, forexample, thatinsome periodsofMesopotamianhistory them, some may askwhywe bothered. Those comfortablewith the
only abit more than 50% ofthe texts that probably were produced story ofthe Greek miracle would prefer not to know that it may be
have been found and studied.' And thereprobably aremore texts in questioned. Andthosewho doubtitmayhaveeasierfieldstoplough
the Mesopotamian languages that no one has read since they were in other disciplines. But I believe the questions we raise here are
writtenthanforanyotherliteratureexceptArabic. Muchbasicwork central to how the West behaves in the modem world and the
remainstobe done, but we cannot imagine, inatime ofcontraction assumptions we Westerners bring to it. Are we the bearers ofa
ofsupport for pure scholarship in the Humanities and even in the uniquelyhumaneculture that has much to teach the other cultures?
Sciences, that aninformed public will continue to support our work Certainly in technology we have much to teach. But other great
unless we step forward from time to time to put it in a broad and traditions question ourmonopoly onvirtue,andIwant toarguehere
accessible context. that they are probably justified in so doing when it comes to the
understandingoffreedom.
7SeeD.Snell,LedgersandPrices,(NewHaven:YaleUniversityPress,1982),103
108.