printer friendly pageENGLISH 350: Law and Literature: Liberalism and Beyond (COMPLIT 350L)
After its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s, many wondered whether the law and literature movement would retain vitality. Within the last few decades there has, however, been an explosion of energy in the field, which has expanded beyond the boundaries of the literary text narrowly conceived and incorporated a range of other genres and humanistic approaches. While the U.S. origins of the movement had tied it more closely to a liberal tradition and the role of the judge, recent engagements with law and literature have looked to work from the Global South, questioned the centrality of cases and judicial decisions, and asked what law and literature might look like outside of liberalism. This course will begin with the classic account of law and literature as framed by twentieth-century jurist Benjamin Cardozo and scholars Robert Cover and Martha Nussbaum, then examine alternatives. Primary texts to be considered include, among others, Bertolt Brecht's The Exception and the Rule, Herman Melvil
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After its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s, many wondered whether the law and literature movement would retain vitality. Within the last few decades there has, however, been an explosion of energy in the field, which has expanded beyond the boundaries of the literary text narrowly conceived and incorporated a range of other genres and humanistic approaches. While the U.S. origins of the movement had tied it more closely to a liberal tradition and the role of the judge, recent engagements with law and literature have looked to work from the Global South, questioned the centrality of cases and judicial decisions, and asked what law and literature might look like outside of liberalism. This course will begin with the classic account of law and literature as framed by twentieth-century jurist Benjamin Cardozo and scholars Robert Cover and Martha Nussbaum, then examine alternatives. Primary texts to be considered include, among others, Bertolt Brecht's The Exception and the Rule, Herman Melville's Billy Budd, Claudia Rankine's Citizen, The Murder Case of Xu Qiuying, and the Constitution of the White Earth Nation. Nearly every session will pair recent scholarship in the field with a literary or artistic work. After the term begins, students accepted into the course can transfer from section (01) into section (02), which meets the R requirement, with consent of the instructor. Students taking the course for R credit can take the course for either 3 or 4 units, depending on the paper length. This class is limited to 22 students, with an effort made to have students from SLS (16 students will be selected by lottery) and six non-law students by consent of instructor. Elements used in grading: Attendance, Class Participation, Written Assignments, Final Paper. Cross-listed with English (
ENGLISH 350) and LAW (3517).
Terms: Aut
| Units: 2-3
Instructors:
Meyler, B. (PI)
ENGLISH 350D: Constitutional Theory
(Same as
LAW 7014.) The guiding question of this course will be how we should think about the role of the U.S. Constitution in American law and American life. In considering this issue, we will address debates about constitutional interpretation (including both originalism and living constitutionalism), the nature and features of constitutional change within the American context, the role of federalism and the separation of powers in the constitutional scheme, and the nature of American constitutionalism as opposed to English and continental European models. We will tackle these debates in the context of some specific contemporary controversies about the Constitution, including: How do the civil rights movement and other social movements impact our understanding of the Constitution?; Does the Constitution reject a European-style inquisitorial process in favor of an Anglo-American vision of due process?; How important is consensus within the Supreme Court to establishing the legitimacy
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(Same as
LAW 7014.) The guiding question of this course will be how we should think about the role of the U.S. Constitution in American law and American life. In considering this issue, we will address debates about constitutional interpretation (including both originalism and living constitutionalism), the nature and features of constitutional change within the American context, the role of federalism and the separation of powers in the constitutional scheme, and the nature of American constitutionalism as opposed to English and continental European models. We will tackle these debates in the context of some specific contemporary controversies about the Constitution, including: How do the civil rights movement and other social movements impact our understanding of the Constitution?; Does the Constitution reject a European-style inquisitorial process in favor of an Anglo-American vision of due process?; How important is consensus within the Supreme Court to establishing the legitimacy of constitutional meanings?; Why do we have nine Supreme Court justices, and; What is the Constitution, and how much does it include outside of the written document? Throughout we will be contemplating the extent to which our interpretation of the constitution depends on our vision of American democracy and the good society.
Last offered: Autumn 2020
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