牙齿的定价:一个关于人身伤害法律制度的生态学分析

Pricing of Teeth:An Ecological Analysis of the Legal System of Personal Injury

应对人身伤害的古代法律规定了两种惩罚措施,即赔偿或以牙还牙。由于两种惩罚措施各有优劣,所以法律实施的面貌应该是两者兼具。即使法律明文规定赔偿,仍离不开以牙还牙作为压力;反之,即使法律明文规定以牙还牙,也难以抵制赔偿的诱惑。生态学的分析表明,只要允许受害人一方保留最终的选择权,同时规定人身伤害的法定赔偿额,法律实施就会在两种惩罚之间维持稳定的比例,这是古代法律应对人身伤害的最优解。借鉴古代的法律智慧有助于缓解现代法律实施中人身伤害“赔偿难”的问题。

Ancient laws for personal injury provided for two types of punishment,compensation or a tit-fortat action.Since both punishment measures have their own advantages and disadvantages,the implementation of the law should be a combination of both.Even if the law clearly stipulates compensation,it is still inseparable from the pressure of a tit-for-tat action;conversely,even if the law clearly stipulates a tit-for-tat action,it is difficult to resist the temptation of compensation.Ecological analysis shows that as long as the victim is allowed to retain the final right of choice and the statutory amount of compensation for personal injury is stipulated,the implementation of the law will maintain a stable ratio between the two punishments.This is the most optimal way for ancient law to deal with personal injury.Drawing on ancient legal wisdom can help alleviate the problem of “difficulty in compensation” for personal injuries in modern legal implementation.