There are many reasons for studying Roman law. Its attractions to those who are primarily interested in law are essentially twofold. First, there is the extraordinarily high quality of Roman legal materials – which demonstrate that the Romans had an aptitude for legal development that was on a par with their military and engineering achievements. Second, there is the fact that Roman law formed the basis of the law of Continental Europe, and continues to provide its conceptual structure. The attractions of studying Roman law for those whose primary interests are either historical or literary are different, but equally strong. It is impossible to understand a society's organisation, values or attitudes without a profound knowledge of its laws; and it is an obvious truism that, to make sense of Roman literature, an understanding of the social context in which it was produced is essential.
The many reasons for studying Roman law explain the different ways in which the subject has come to be taught: sometimes as law, sometimes as history and sometimes as classics. D.P.'s new book highlights a fourth possibility: Roman law can be taught as part of a course on Classical Civilisation. Indeed, the book is part of the Classical World Series, which – according to the blurb – is ‘[d]esigned specifically for students and teachers of Classical Civilization at late school and early university level’. As D.P. is careful to make clear in the preface, the book is not intended to be a substitute for more detailed, technical works. Rather, it aims to provide ‘a brief guide for those wishing to obtain a basic overview of the state of Roman private law during the first three centuries of the Common Era’.
D.P. achieves this aim very well. Within a mere 105 pages he provides an accurate, clear account of the sources, procedure and substantive content of Roman private law (i.e. the law of persons, property, contract, delict and succession). The Institutes of Gaius are quoted extensively, but there is also a very engaging use of non-traditional sources such as papyri (e.g. at pp. 38, 48 and 51) and extracts from the Fontes Iuris Romani Anteiustiniani. There is an emphasis on accessibility: technical terms are avoided wherever possible, everything is translated into English and D.P. shows commendable self-restraint in deciding to refer readers to more technical works for discussion of difficult legal issues. The recommendations for further reading, although limited to books, are very thorough.
Of course, the introductory, non-technical nature of the book means that some issues have to be glossed over in a way that more advanced students might want to revisit. To take one example, we are told on p. 32 that ‘the compilers [of the Digest] made certain changes to the texts in order to reflect the law of the Justinianic period (i.e. the [sic] scored out references to institutions which had become obsolete), but it is generally assumed that most of these changes were largely cosmetic’. The parenthesis should, perhaps, begin ‘e.g.’, but, even so, the final clause is rather too breezy for comfort. Similarly, the Digest text of Ulpian holding that a stipulation is formed by the promisor replying ‘Quidni’ (D 45.1.1.2) is presented (at p. 76) as straightforwardly reflecting classical law. It might have been better (and interesting to readers) to give a sense of the controversies behind these positions.
On the other hand, some of the best passages in the book make sophisticated, advanced points with great clarity. The distinctive Roman concept of familia, and its contrast with the modern nuclear family, is powerfully articulated (p. 42). There is also a fascinating argument about the Roman jurists' processes of argumentation (at pp. 59, 72 and 90) which builds on work by W.W. Buckland (‘Wardour Street Roman Law’, Law Quarterly Review 17 [1901], 179), to propose that the earlier jurists' definitions were never intended to be exhaustive; rather, their aim was to use etymology to elucidate the concepts being discussed. These are points from which advanced students and scholars alike will benefit.
This book clearly is eminently suitable for the late school/early university audience of Classical Civilisation students at whom it is aimed. It could also be recommended as introductory reading for law students about to take Roman law options – they will fully appreciate the significance of the comparative remarks on juristic persons (pp. 36–7) and the contrast between a law of contract and a law of contracts (p. 74). But the people who really should read it are the syllabus designers for courses on Classical Civilisation. For it seems that, currently, Classical Civilisation courses at A level make little use of Roman law. For instance, neither the AQA nor OCR specifications expressly refer to law,Footnote 1 and it is quite striking that the AQA, in its advice to students, does not even mention law as a subject that would ‘go well’ with Classical Civilisation. Perhaps it is felt that legal materials are too technical or inaccessible to be suitable. Yet course units on topics such as OCR's ‘Roman Society and Thought’ refer to the position of freedmen, foreigners, women and the family – study of which obviously demands legal analysis; and the jurists' writings show Roman thought at its best. This volume eloquently demonstrates how much students on such courses would gain by studying Roman law.
