James Boyd White
Encyclopedia
James Boyd White is an American law professor, literary critic, scholar and philosopher who is generally credited with founding the "Law and Literature
" movement and is the preeminent proponent of the analysis of constitutive rhetoric in the analysis of legal texts.
, from which he graduated in 1960 with a B.A. in Classics
, and went on to earn an M.A. in English Literature
from Harvard University
in 1961, and an LL.B. from the Harvard Law School
in 1964.
He practiced with the firm of Foley, Hoag & Eliot in Boston
before moving into teaching. He taught at the University of Colorado School of Law
from 1967 to 1974, at the University of Chicago Law School
from 1974 to 1983, and has been at the University of Michigan Law School
from 1983 until the present. At Michigan, White is the L. Hart Wright Professor of Law, Professor of English and Adjunct Professor of Classics
. He is also a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.
White's subsequent books include:
Law and literature
The law and literature movement focuses on the interdisciplinary connection between law and literature. This field has roots in two major developments in the intellectual history of law -- first, the growing doubt about whether law in isolation is a source of value and meaning, or whether it must...
" movement and is the preeminent proponent of the analysis of constitutive rhetoric in the analysis of legal texts.
Biography
White attended Amherst CollegeAmherst College
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009...
, from which he graduated in 1960 with a B.A. in Classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
, and went on to earn an M.A. in English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1961, and an LL.B. from the Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
in 1964.
He practiced with the firm of Foley, Hoag & Eliot in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
before moving into teaching. He taught at the University of Colorado School of Law
University of Colorado School of Law
The University of Colorado Law School is one of the professional graduate schools within the University of Colorado System. It is a public law school, with more than 500 students attending and working toward a Juris Doctor or Master of Law. The Wolf Law Building Located in Boulder, Colorado, and...
from 1967 to 1974, at the University of Chicago Law School
University of Chicago Law School
The University of Chicago Law School was founded in 1902 as the graduate school of law at the University of Chicago and is among the most prestigious and selective law schools in the world. The U.S. News & World Report currently ranks it fifth among U.S...
from 1974 to 1983, and has been at the University of Michigan Law School
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...
from 1983 until the present. At Michigan, White is the L. Hart Wright Professor of Law, Professor of English and Adjunct Professor of Classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
. He is also a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.
Works
White's most well-known book, The Legal Imagination, was published in 1973. That book was designed essentially as a textbook for students studying legal language. In The Legal Imagination, literary and other texts are compared to legal texts in the way they "constitute" the identities of characters and the meanings of concepts. That book is thought to have "kicked off" the Law & Literature movement and is still widely influential.White's subsequent books include:
- When Words Lose Their Meaning (1984)
- Heracles' Bow (1988)
- Justice As Translation (1990)
- Acts of Hope (1994)
- "This Book of Starres": Learning to Read George Herbert (1994)
- From Expectation to Experience : Essays on Law and Legal Education (2000)
- The Edge of Meaning (2003)
- Living Speech: Resisting the Empire of Force (2006)