Shakespeare and the Law

Catalog description

This course examines the relevance of William Shakespeare to the history of law and the practice of justice. What do Shakespeare’s poems and plays have to teach us about the law? Why do judges continue to cite Shakespeare in their opinions? And how might Shakespeare help us understand what justice is? We will read Shakespeare’s works alongside court opinions and other forms of legal writing to grapple with long-standing debates in the history of common law, statutory law, and constitutional law. Along the way, students will be introduced to a wide range of legal topics, including contracts, torts, evidence, civil procedure, criminal law, estate law, and conflict of laws. This course will be of particular interest to prelaw students. Satisfies the LTRQ Ways of Knowing requirement. Satisfies the Historical Approaches requirement for the English major. Prerequisites & Notes First-year students require permission of the instructor.