乾嘉时期“杀奸之情”的朝堂立场摭议

[中图分类号］D929 [文献标识码］A [文章编号]1008-1763（2025）06-0106-08

A Preliminary Discussion on the Court's Stance on Cases of “ Killing Adulterers” during the Qianlong-Jiaqing Period

ZHANG Yimin （Law School，PekingUniversity，Beijing ，China）

Abstract： During the Qianlong-Jiaqing Period of the Qing Dynasty，the court’s stance on cases of “killing adulterers”once focused on clarifying the statutory elements such as applicable subjects and circumstances，as well as simplifying the concepts of the existing laws and regulations. While the scope of subjects eligible for“exemption from punishment for kiling adulterers on the spot”was expanded from the husband （of the adulterous wife） and the woman who resisted adultery to the woman’s son，the category of adulterer-killers with no direct connection to the case was gradually narrowed down. Among the numerous cases that falsely invoked the“kiling adulterers on the spot”rule，the authorities identified two most representative scenarios：using“killing adulterers as a pretext to actually force someone to death”and “killing the adulterer after witnessing the adultery （rather than on the spot）". When the husband was unable to kill the adulterer himself，the government could not only killthe adulterer on his behalf but also adjusted the statutory penalties upward for mothers including biological mothers，legal mothers（the primary spouses，distinct from concubines），and stepmothers by remarriage who killed their sons due to the adultery.This adjustment was achieved by simplifying legal concepts such as forming the intent to kill. This judicial normalization-oriented stance of the court reflected the Qianlong-Jiaqing academic tradition of “no credibility without evidence”in judicial adjudication. It also echoed the Confucian scholarship of the Han

Dynasty and the alignment with the intention of the Qing Dynasty's“supreme”imperial power to“emphasize the husband's authority in the family to clarify the meaning of respecting the monarch".

Key words： killing adulterers; judging cases based on circumstances and intent;Qianlong-Jiaqing academic tradition;criminal administration

在传统中国法律文化的语境中，男女双方于婚姻关系之外发生的实质交往行为，概可称“奸”。（剩余12983字）