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Thanks to you and the WMST listowner. Alan B. -----Original Message----- From: Amelia Carr <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: Tuesday, February 15, 2000 6:19 PM Subject: Re: Wife-beating in the Wakefield Noah >This question is raised so frequently on the Women's Studies List (WMST-L), >that the list owner has posted the discussion on the web as an FAQ: > >http://research.umbc.edu/~korenman/wmst/ruleofthumb.html > >The notion is certainly around in the 18th century (Blackstone's >Commentaries 1775) and perhaps earlier. You will find on that page >references to legal cases and relevant articles. > >Amelia Carr >Allegheny College >[log in to unmask] > > >At 04:57 PM 2/15/00 -0500, you wrote: >>You've all heard of the rule of thumb, i.e., mustn't beat your wife with a >>stick larger in circumference than your thumb. Was this a legal rule or an >>urban myth? Some years ago this question was debated at some length (I >>believe on a history discussion list), and, as far as I could tell, no >>consensus was reached by the debaters. I was and am skeptical, but others >>seem sure that such a rule was operative in early modern England. >> >>Yours, Bill Godshalk >> >> >>********************************************** >>* W. L. Godshalk * >>* Professor, Department of English * >>* University of Cincinnati * >>* Cincinnati OH 45221-0069 * Stellar Disorder >>* [log in to unmask] * >>* >> * >>**********************************************