Clamouring for Legal Protection

Robert F Barsky is a Guggenheim Fellow and Professor of Humanities, with a Joint Appointment in the Law School at Vanderbilt University, USA. Clamouring for Legal Protection was supported by a Rockefeller Bellagio Writing Residency, and a Canada Research Chair.

Clamouring for Legal Protection is a must-read for any current or aspiring attorney. This insightful book demonstrates the crucial need to go beyond the law to be a good lawyer. By conducting an in-depth study of the Great Books, Barsky not only proves the existence of a timeless tradition of seeking refuge and providing asylum, but he also reminds us of the power of literature to evoke empathy and self-actualization.

• Introduction: Opening Up the Great Books I. Canons, Great Books and Classics II. ‘Popular’ Culture III. From Cultural Reflection to Legal Protection IV. Why Fiction? What About the Real World? V. From Escapism to EngagementVI. From Empathy to Revelation 1. Spreading Disease, or Inoculating Us from Intolerance? I. Pandemics in Literature and Culture A. The Arc of Disease, Suffering and Death II. The Foreignness of Diseases III. The Rhetoric of Blame A. From Vulnerable to Unwanted and Diseased IV. The Plague V. From Symptoms to Panic VI. Creating Empathy VII. Limbo and the Will to Move AroundVIII. From Quarantines to Quarrels to Empathy? IX. Art in the Time of Cholera X. Crossing the Border into Obscenity XI. Predicting Post-Pandemic Politics 2. Following Pathways, Networks and Guides I. The Cessation Clause II. Following Intermediaries in Religious Texts III. Human Smugglers IV. Language Issues and Displacement V. Pursuing the Land of Milk and Honey VI. Divine Intermediaries and Shift s to Immigration Policy VII. Guides from Behind the Veil VIII. Intermediaries to Eden IX. From Freedom Fighter to Refugee X. From Civil War to Hell XI. A Reluctant Follower XII. Fleeing with Loved Ones XIII. The Purposeless Quest XIV. Constantly on the Road XV. The Search for Treasure XVI. The Promised Land 3. Opening Doors and Scaling Walls I. From Protection to Integration II. From Victim to Slave III. Supplicating Before the Gatekeeping King IV. Consulting Constituents on Border Policy V. Opening the Right Doors VI. Doors, Doorways and the People Hidden Behind Them VII. Before the Law VIII. Ill-Advised Strategies for Opening Doors IX. Real-World Gatekeeping X. Rights at the Border XI. Behind Closed Doors XII. Doors Towards Metaphysical Voyages 4. Confronting Inhospitable Spaces and Hostile Hosts I. Storms, Floods and the Purging of Unwanted Civilisations II. The Romantic Refugee III. Mary and Percy Shelley: Feminist and Atheist IV. Refugees in a Time of Climate Change A. Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein and His Monster: Climate Refugees B. Percy Shelley’s Perspective on Climate and Geomorphology C. Lord Byron: Catastrophism, Climate Change and Ensuing Darkness V. From Creation of the Earth to Apocalypse VI. Being Misled into the Wrong Paradise VII. Finding Revelation Instead of Refuge VIII. From Persecution to Punishment IX. Chance Encounters X. Finding Hell XI. Transformation into Darkness 5. Encounters with Aliens, Monsters and Terrorists I. Monsters in the Great Tradition II. Insidious Monsters in the (Real) World III. First Encounters IV. The Monstrous Unfamiliar V. A Refugee Amongst Refugees VI. Confronting Your Neighbour: The Monster VII. Identifying the Monsters, then Living with Them Conclusion: From Persecution to Wonderland