Instructor: Dr. Daniel W. Skubik, PhD JD MDiv
Office: J266 / office hours as scheduled & by app’t
Voice: 951.343.4288 / Fax: 951.343.4520
Web: http://www.calbaptist.edu/dskubik
E-Mail: dskubik@calbaptist.edu

Law & Literature

POL 330
MWF 11:00-11:50AM

Fall Semester, 2009

 

As several legal scholars have observed, law is a profession of words. It is also a discipline or practice, like religion, in which stories play a critical role. This course is designed to examine the role and function of narrative in law, and the role and function of law in major works of literature, to understand better both law and literature. To do this, the course focuses upon the techniques we normally associate with reading literature to read, understand and interpret law. We will utilize selections ranging from Kafka and Melville to Christie and Faulkner, as well as the Hebrew Scriptures (Noahic and Mosaic law), examining how literature often constructs law; and the consequences of reading law, represented in selections from the U.S. Constitution and U.S. Supreme Court decisions, as literature.

 

By the end of the term, students should be able to (1) identify and critically evaluate selected portions of literature that deal with law and legal cases using devices associated with legal reasoning; and, (2) identify and critically evaluate narratives and reasoning in legal cases using devices associated with literary theory. (These objectives will be measured by successful completion of substantive projects and comprehensive exams.) Students should then be able to demonstrate (such as through their participation and journaling exercises) an ability to construct bridges between law and literature, as well as detail significant differences between these cultural practices.

 

The course is open to all students able and willing to engage in advanced study, and can be used to fulfill undergraduate English and Political Science major or minor upper division unit requirements for approved students.

 

 

Required Texts

Thomas Morawetz, Literature and the Law (Aspen/Wolters Kluwer, 2007)

Richard Posner, Law and Literature (revised & enlarged edition, Harvard University Press, 1998/2002)

 

Both books are readily available, new & used, from web shops such as Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble, as well as from the CBU Bookshop. Additional required literary and legal readings will also be scheduled throughout the term, drawing from items available through the Internet (such as through FindLaw and Lexis-Nexis). See the syllabus for details.

 

 

Supplemental titles of interest and from which selections may be made available for class study

 

William Bishin & Christopher Stone, Law, Language and Ethics: An Introduction to Law and Legal Method (Foundation Press, 1972)

Sanford Levinson & Steven Mailloux (eds.), Interpreting Law and Literature: A Hermeneutic Reader (Northwestern University Press, 1988/1991)

Gregory Leyh (ed.), Legal Hermeneutics: History, Theory, and Practice (University of California Press, 1992)

Readings & Assignments Schedule

 

 

  Week #1
  (Sep 11)

  Introduction to course, requirements and expectations
  Introduction to studies in law & literature

  Week #2
  (Sep 14, 16, 18)

  P [Posner], Introduction, 1-7   
  M [Morawetz], 138-139 & 145-147 {Kafka & Kafka}
  [First journal entry due by midnight Sunday, Sep 20]

  Week #3
  (Sep 21, 23, 25)

  P, ch 7, 209-254
  Genesis 9 1-17 and Exodus 21 28 – 22 8                                          [2nd  journal entry due]

  Week #4
  (Sep 28, 30 / Oct 2)

  P. ch 8, 255-302
  M, 481-508 {Hyland}                                                  [3rd journal entry due]

  Week #5
  (Oct 5, 7, 9)

  P, ch 10, 345-377
  Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972)                    [4th journal entry due]

  Week #6
  (Oct 12, 14, 16)

  P, ch 2, 49-92
  M, 283-293 & 295-299 {O. Henry & Maupassant}   [5th journal entry due]

  Week #7
  (Oct 19, 21, 23)

  P, ch 4, 127-147
  M, 179-192 {Miller}                                                  [6th journal entry due]
  No class meeting on 23rd

  Week #8
  (Oct 26, 28, 30)

  Midterms week 
  [date of midterm tbd]

  Week #9
  (Nov 2, 4, 6)

  P, ch 5, 148-181
  M, 195-221 {Clark}                                                   [7th journal entry due]

  Week #10
  (Nov 9, 11, 13)

  P, ch 1, 11-48
  M, 386-403 {Christie}                                              [8th journal entry due]

  Week #11
  (Nov 16, 18, 20)

  P, ch 3, 93-126
  M, 404-417  {Faulkner}                                            [9th journal entry due]

  Week # 12
  (Nov 23, 25, 27)

  23rd: Film – To Kill a Mockingbird    [also see M, 424-439 {Lee}]
  No class meetings on 25th or 27th: Thanksgiving Break 


  Week #13
  (Nov 30 / Dec 2, 4)

  P, ch 11, 381-412
  M, 100-131 {Melville}                                            [10th journal entry due]

  Week #14
  (Dec 7, 9, 11)

  P, ch 6, 182-205
  M, 446-468  {Kafka}                                       [optional 11th journal entry due]

  Dec 16
  Wednesday

  Final Examination period as set by University, 11:00AM-1:00PM

 

Caveat

This syllabus schedule is composed in good faith, with a schedule of readings and assignments that will guide us throughout the term. Still, the instructor reserves the right to make adjustments to this schedule as deemed necessary for the overall enterprise of the course. Any changes will be communicated as far in advance as feasible, and you are responsible for knowing if and when any changes have been made.

 

Assessment & Grading Scale

  Midterm Exam = 30%

  90 - 100 = A range  (90-94 = A-)

  Final Exam = 45%

  80 - 89 = B range  (80-83 = B-  /  87-89 = B+)

  Journaling Project = 20% (10 x 2% each)

  70 - 79 = C range  (70-73 = C-  /  77-79 = C+)

  Participation in-class = 5%

  60 - 69 = D range  (60-63 = D-  /  67-69 = D+)

 

  0 - 59 = F

 

Comprehensive Examinations

The midterm and final exam will be wide-ranging in nature, with an emphasis on analytical skills and essay writing that together draw from the full scope of our studies. The exams will comprise objective and essay sections, covering materials from the beginning of the term (midterm), or from the midterm to the end (final).

 

Each exam is closed book/open notes. Meaning of open notes: you are permitted to bring one sheet of standard sized (8½” x 11”) paper with notes written on it, in any size handwriting, type or font, without regard to margins, front and back.

 


Journaling Project

Students should begin compiling an electronic journal related to this class. This means that one should be journaling (that is, preparing substantive written entries in some digital format that can be transmitted to the instructor via email) each designated week, irrespective of whether the student actually attended that week’s sessions.

A substantive entry is ~200 words (minimum, lengthier entries are welcome) summarizing and reacting to some key points from a particular week’s readings and class discussions, perhaps relating to some real world case or event, some recently read piece of academic literature, or simply related ideas provoked by life. These entries can form a series of reflections, so linking entries along the way one to another like an intellectual diary, or can be independent musings week-by-week.

To be considered timely, any entry should be received in the instructor’s email inbox (dskubik@calbaptist.edu) either as plain text within the body of the email or as a Word attachment) no earlier than Wednesday at 11:50am (end of Wednesday’s class) and no later than midnight of the subsequent Sunday of each class week for which credit is sought. Thus, for example, a journal entry for Week 2—when we meet first on Monday, September 21st—is due no earlier than the end of the class period on Wednesday, Sep 23rd and no later than midnight Sunday, Sep 27th). Entries for any week that are received before the Wednesday class session actually ends or after that Sunday deadline will be accepted as part of the overall journaling project, but will not be marked and counted towards your final grade.

Participation & Attendance

Although speaking in class, publicly putting and defending a position or interpretation, can be daunting, you are strongly encouraged to learn to think through your own and others’ experiences and insights within the context of our discussions. In this setting, you are not being evaluated for reaching “right” conclusions, but for demonstrating your facility in forming arguments for any conclusions or ideas put, given the material we cover.

To give direct incentive to so engage, 5% of your mark for the course will be comprised of my assessment of your participation during the semester. Participation in-class includes substantive contributions to our discussions on a regular basis and does not include attendance (which is expected since mandated by the University).

 

 

CBU Statement on Academic Dishonesty

Faculty in the College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) have been asked to include the following statement in all our syllabi. Do speak with your instructor if at any time you have questions or concerns about this statement and its meaning for or application in your classes.

 

Academic dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, copying, and other forms) will be reported to the Dean of Students. Judicial sanctions for offense [sic] are handled on a case-by-case basis depending on the seriousness of the violation, prior violations and other factors. Judicial sanctions may include, but are not limited to, loss of a letter grade or failure in the course in which the offense occurred, suspension, and/or dismissal from the University. A detailed discussion of academic dishonesty is located in the Student Handbook.     [Source: 2006-2007 Undergraduate Catalog, at p.80]