Love on Trial: Nature, Law and Same-Sex Marriage in the Court of Shakespeare

Desmond Manderson and Paul Yachnin, Love on Trial (2004) 49 McGill L J 475

37 Pages Posted: 3 Aug 2012

See all articles by Desmond Manderson

Desmond Manderson

ANU College of Law; ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences; McGill University - Faculty of Law

Paul Yachnin

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Date Written: August 2, 2003

Abstract

This paper provides the text of a judgment on the legality of same sex marriage in the court of Shakespeare, a radically interdisciplinary pedagogical experiment undertaken by ENglish and Law students at McGill University. The court considered oral arguments and briefs from counsel on the meaning of marriage in the Shakespearean corpus, particular the marriage comedies, and further examined the jurisprudential practices of the Court, and the question of interpretation over time. The question is, is marriage immutable or cultural dynamic and what does a careful reading of Shakesepare tell us about these legal and social questions?

Keywords: legal interpretation, hermeneutics, Shakespeare, law and literature, same sex marriage, cultural and social history

Suggested Citation

Manderson, Desmond and Yachnin, Paul, Love on Trial: Nature, Law and Same-Sex Marriage in the Court of Shakespeare (August 2, 2003). Desmond Manderson and Paul Yachnin, Love on Trial (2004) 49 McGill L J 475, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2122862

Desmond Manderson (Contact Author)

ANU College of Law; ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences ( email )

Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200
Australia

HOME PAGE: http://https://researchers.anu.edu.au/researchers/manderson-dra

McGill University - Faculty of Law ( email )

Canada

HOME PAGE: http://https://researchers.anu.edu.au/researchers/manderson-dra

Paul Yachnin

affiliation not provided to SSRN

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