Legal History Workshop – 6702

Fall 2013

This seminar brings in leading scholars engaged in projects at the intersection of law and history. The goal of the seminar is to provide students with an introduction to the field of legal history and an opportunity to engage with scholars working on innovative projects that span from the ancient to the modern world, covering a range of geographical regions as well. Workshop sessions will be devoted to the presentation and discussion of works-in-progress of the guest scholars. Collectively, their works will encourage students to think comparatively about the role of law in defining the nature and limits of state power, and more broadly about the historical dynamics of law and society, with particular attention to the ways in which law has served not only as a mode of governance, but also as a cultural resource, enabling individuals to contest conventional ideas about race, class, and gender difference, and the very meaning of social justice.