Engaging with the underlying social context in which emotions are a motivational


force, Law and the Passions provides a uniquely inclusive commentary on the significance


and influence of emotions in the history and continuing development of


legal judgment, policy formation, legal practice and legal dogma.


 


Although the emotionality of the law and the use of emotional tropes in legal


discourse has become an established focus in recent scholarship, the extent to


which emotion and the passions have informed decision-making, decision-avoidance


and legal reasoning – rather than as simply an adjunct – is still a matter for


critical analysis. As evidenced in a range of illustrative legal cases, emotions have


been instrumental in the evolution of key legal principles and have produced many


controversial judgments. Addressing the latent influence of fear, hate, love and


compassion, the book explores the mutability of law and its transformative power,


especially when faced with fluctuating social mores. The textual nature of law and


the impact of literary forms on legal actors are also critically examined to further


elucidate the idea of law-making as both rational and emotional, and significantly


as an essential activity of the empathic imagination. To this end, it is suggested


that critical scholarship on law, the passions and emotions not only advances our


understanding of the inner workings of law, it constitutes a fundamental part of


our moral reasoning, and has the capacity to articulate the conditions for a more


dynamic, adaptable, ethical and effective legal institution.


 


This interdisciplinary book will be of interest to scholars and students in the


fields of law and literature, legal theory, legal philosophy, law and the humanities,


legal aesthetics, sociology of law, politics, law and policy, human rights, general jurisprudence


and social justice, as well as cultural studies.