The Boundaries Of Meaning And The Formation Of Law

Different legal systems share some basic developmental tendencies that are rooted in the historical evolution of language and culture. In this comparative history of English common law, Islamic law, and Chinese imperialist law Sharron Gu describes the formation of three diverse legal systems in terms of their unique linguistic environments. She argues that the characteristics of each language define the nature of the common, statute, administrative, and religious laws associated with it and set the boundaries for its legal imagination.

The act of reproduction, and its variants, never change much, but our ideas about the meaning of sex are in constant flux. Switch a decade, cross a border, or traverse class lines and the harmless pleasures of one group become the gravest crimes in another. Combining meticulous research and lively storytelling, The Boundaries of Desire traces the fast–moving bloodsport of sex law over the past century, and challenges our most cherished notions about family, power, gender, and identity. Starting when courts censored birth control information as pornography and let men rape their wives, and continuing through the "sexual revolution" and into the present day (when rape, gay rights, sex trafficking, and sex on the internet saturate the news), Berkowitz shows how the law has remained out of synch with the convulsive changes in sexual morality. By focusing on the stories of real people, Berkowitz adds a compelling human element to what might otherwise be faceless legal battles. The law is made by people, after all, and nothing sparks intolerance – on the left and right –– more than sex. Ultimately, Berkowitz shows the emptiness of sanctimonious condemnation, and argues that sexual questions are too subtle and volatile for simple, catch–all solutions.

This book presents a pluri-dimensional approach to today's most relevant perspectives on the boundaries of Law, both in terms of its creation and performance, in order to discuss its current meaning and role as a normative order. To do so, it presents a broad range of standpoints concerning philosophical, theoretical, juridical-political, dogmatic and methodological issues, and proposes new bases for the construction and effectiveness of legal statements and decisions, from those issued by juridical-political organisations to those taken by judges. In addition, it sheds new light on discussions concerning the juridical and political role of Law in connection with public policy and democracy-related issues, especially contemporary debates between International Law and Human Rights Law, on the one hand, and between Public Law and Private Law, on the other.

This history of literary Arabic describes the evolution of Arabic poetry and prose in the context of music, ritual performance, the arts and architecture. The thousands-of-years-old language is perhaps more highly developed and refined than any other on earth. This book focuses on what is unique about Arabic compared to other major languages of the world (Greek, Latin, Hebrew, English and Spanish) and how the distinct characteristics of Arabic took shape at various points in its history. The book provides a cultural background for understanding social and political institutions and religious beliefs--more influenced by the rhythms and depths of poetic language than other cultures--in the Middle East today.

This book explores convergences of legal doctrine despite jurisdictional, cultural and political barriers, as well as divergences due to such barriers, examining topics that are of vital importance to contemporary legal scholars. Written by leading experts from all continents, its 26 chapters present a comparative analysis of cutting-edge legal issues of the 21st century. While each of the countries covered stands alone as a sovereign state, in a technologically advanced world their disparate systems nonetheless show comparable strategies in dealing with complex legal issues. Several of the chapters show how, in addition to state normative production and state adjudication, a growing panoply of non-state instruments and non-state adjudication are becoming more and more central to the legal field. This book is a key addition to the library of any scholar wanting to keep abreast of the major trends in contemporary law. Representing the current state of law in a vast range of areas, it covers each topic from a comparative perspective. Cet ouvrage, en examinant des sujets d'une importance vitale pour les juristes contemporains, traite des convergences de la doctrine juridique malgré les barrières juridictionnelles, culturelles et politiques ainsi que des divergences dues à ces barrières. Écrits par d'éminents universitaires de tous les continents, ses 26 chapitres présentent une analyse comparative de sujets juridiques majeurs du 21e siècle. Dans un monde technologiquement avancé, bien que chaque pays analysé dans cet ouvrage demeure autonome en tant qu'État souverain, l’ensemble des systèmes disparates présente néanmoins des stratégies comparables pour traiter des questions juridiques complexes. En outre, plusieurs chapitres montrent comment, en plus de la production normative et de la résolution des différends étatiques, la panoplie croissante de différents types d'instruments non étatiques et de résolution non étatique des différends devient de plus en plus centrale dans la sphère juridique. Cet ouvrage est un ajout essentiel à la bibliothèque de tout universitaire souhaitant se tenir au courant des principales tendances du droit contemporain. Il couvre un vaste domaine de sujets traités d'un point de vue comparatif et représente l'état actuel du droit dans chaque domaine.

This new edition of one of the most widely used course books on Islamic civilizations around the world has been substantially revised to incorporate the new scholarship and insights of the last twenty-five years. Ira Lapidus' history explores the beginnings and transformations of Islamic civilizations in the Middle East and details Islam's worldwide diffusion. The history is divided into four parts. Part I is a comprehensive account of pre-Islamic late antiquity; the beginnings of Islam; the early Islamic empires; and Islamic religious, artistic, legal and intellectual cultures. Part II deals with the construction in the Middle East of Islamic religious communities and states to the fifteenth century. Part III includes the history to the nineteenth century of Islamic North Africa and Spain; the Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empires; and other Islamic societies in Asia and Africa. Part IV accounts for the impact of European commercial and imperial domination on Islamic societies and traces the development of the modern national state system and the simultaneous Islamic revival from the early nineteenth century to the present.

In this book Douglas Johnston provides a synthesis of all disciplines relevant to any aspect of boundary-making. He outlines the general theory of boundary-making, reviews the modern history of all modes of boundary-making in the ocean, and provides a theoretical framework for the analysis and evaluation of ocean boundary claims, practices, arrangements, and settlements. The author suggests that as bilateral treaty-making continues, significant boundary delimitation patterns will emerge, some of which may prove useful in non-oceanic contexts of boundary-making and natural resource management such as Antarctica, airspace and outerspace, and international lakes and rivers.

This book brings together a collection of essays in honour of Peter Groenewegen, one of the most distinguished historians of economic thought. His work on a wide range of economic theorists approaches a level of near insuperability.

The period since the First World War has been a century distinguished by the loss of any unitary foundation for truth, ethics, and the legitimate authority of law. With the emergence of radical pluralism, law has become the site of extraordinary creativity and, on occasion, a source of rights for those historically excluded from its protection. A Cultural History of Law in the Modern Age tells stories of human struggles in the face of state authority – including Aboriginal land claims, popular resistance to corporate power, and the inter-generational ramifications of genocidal state violence. The essays address how, and with what effects, different expressive modes (ceremonial dance, live street theater, the acoustics of radio, the affective range of film, to name a few) help to construct, memorialize, and disseminate political and legal meaning. Drawing upon a wealth of visual, textual and sound sources, A Cultural History of Law in the Modern Age presents essays that examine key cultural case studies of the period on the themes of justice, constitution, codes, agreements, arguments, property and possession, wrongs, and the legal profession.