Any person is born free (at least, so has to be in the civilized states and communities). Proceeding from this statement of question, honor and dignity protection of the personality is its integral (it is possible to tell, natural) the subjective right. Laws of any modern state positioning itself as democratic, in detail take up this question and honor and dignity protections of the person reserve the right for any citizen.
Honor and dignity protection of the personality
Actually everything is not so simply and is definitely not identical in various states, in particular, when it comes to ways of honor and dignity protection of the specific person in a specific situation.
In the former Soviet Union the law works in many states often quasi - or a pseudo-democratic way. Sometimes the specific person needs a lot of time and efforts for protection against insults and the humiliating actions of other members of society (though this right is affirmed in the law). In the kvazidemokatichesky states it in considerably degree and most often depends on opportunities of the person, his social status and level of income.
When it is about analysis by judicial authorities of cases of consequences of physical interactions of participants of conflict situations, here do not doubt: to you surely vytreplt nerves to the maximum. The state (to be exact some specific official) will very vjedlivo (that does not mean attentively and objectively at all) investigate this situation. As a result the initiator of the conflict can even be guilty less, than the person protecting the honor and advantage. The state (more precisely, his representatives) in this case more interests, how adequately you answered the initiator of the conflict. Until it finds out it, you can be taken into custody to one room with perhaps very hostile and badly well-mannered persons. Here perhaps it is necessary either to protect, or to lose. Therefore well think at threat of a situation of participation in the physical conflicts (and nonphysical), maybe, it is better not to answer, try to be eliminated, escape. It is not a shame, but there is a chance to keep nerves, or perhaps and freedom.
In general, when we study problems of honor and dignity protection, we speak about the conflict interpersonal non-property relations. It is the sphere not only legislative, civil and legal concepts. For psychology and others anthropocentric (that is, studying the person) areas of knowledge it, first of all, space of value and ethical orientations of the personality and society. So each person in this question should be guided as by high moral ideals (which can be not identical at different people in different communities), and by customs and concepts of society in which he lives.