Law and the Modern Mind : Consciousness and Responsibility in American Legal Culture by Susanna L. Blumenthal read online book DOC, DJV, MOBI
9780674048935 English 0674048938 Headline-grabbing murders are far from the only cases in which sanity has been disputed in the American courtroom. "Law and the Modern Mind" traces this history of litigation, revealing how ideas of human consciousness, agency, and responsibility have shaped American jurisprudence. Susanna Blumenthal analyzes the religious, philosophical, and medical understandings of the self that were often in conflict during these trials. In a newly independent republic, fears of a citizenry maddened by too much liberty haunted the courtroom. Judges struggled to reconcile Enlightenment rationality with new sciences of the mind suggesting that deviant behavior might result from disease rather than conscious choice. They faced serious conundrums as they attempted to apportion civil as well as criminal responsibility, aiming to protect the helpless from imposition while ensuring the security of business transactions. Defining the threshold of competence was especially vexing in litigation within the family circle, which raised uncomfortable questions about the obligations of kinship and marriage. This body of law and practice coalesced into a jurisprudence of insanity, which also illuminates the position of other categories of persons to whom the insane were compared, particularly minors, married women, and slaves. Over time, the freedom allowed to the eccentric was enlarged as jurists came to recognize the diversity of beliefs that could be held by otherwise reasonable persons. Focusing on the problematic relationship between consciousness and liability, "Law and the Modern Mind "offers a new way to understand the history of American law in its formative period., In post-revolutionary America, the autonomous individual was both the linchpin of a young nation and a threat to the founders' vision of ordered liberty. Conceiving of self-government as a psychological as well as a political project, jurists built a republic of laws upon the Enlightenment science of the mind with the aim of producing a responsible citizenry. Susanna Blumenthal probes the assumptions and consequences of this undertaking, revealing how ideas about consciousness, agency, and accountability have shaped American jurisprudence. Focusing on everyday adjudication, Blumenthal shows that mental soundness was routinely disputed in civil as well as criminal cases. Litigants presented conflicting religious, philosophical, and medical understandings of the self, intensifying fears of a populace maddened by too much liberty. Judges struggled to reconcile common sense notions of rationality with novel scientific concepts that suggested deviant behavior might result from disease rather than conscious choice. Determining the threshold of competence was especially vexing in litigation among family members that raised profound questions about the interconnections between love and consent. This body of law coalesced into a jurisprudence of insanity, which also illuminates the position of those to whom the insane were compared, particularly children, married women, and slaves. Over time, the liberties of the eccentric expanded as jurists came to recognize the diversity of beliefs held by otherwise reasonable persons. In calling attention to the problematic relationship between consciousness and liability, Law and the Modern Mind casts new light on the meanings of freedom in the formative era of American law., In postrevolutionary America, the autonomous individual was both the linchpin of a young nation and a threat to the founders'e(tm) vision of ordered liberty. Conceiving of self-government as a psychological as well as a political project, jurists built a republic of laws upon the Enlightenment science of the mind with the aim of producing a responsible citizenry. Susanna Blumenthal probes the assumptions and consequences of this undertaking, revealing how ideas about consciousness, agency, and accountability have shaped American jurisprudence. Focusing on everyday adjudication, Blumenthal shows that mental soundness was routinely disputed in civil as well as criminal cases. Litigants presented conflicting religious, philosophical, and medical understandings of the self, intensifying fears of a populace maddened by too much liberty. Judges struggled to reconcile common sense notions of rationality with novel scientific concepts that suggested deviant behavior might result from disease rather than conscious choice. Determining the threshold of competence was especially vexing in litigation among family members that raised profound questions about the interconnections between love and consent. This body of law coalesced into a jurisprudence of insanity, which also illuminates the position of those to whom the insane were compared, particularly children, married women, and slaves. Over time, the liberties of the eccentric expanded as jurists came to recognize the diversity of beliefs held by otherwise reasonable persons. In calling attention to the problematic relationship between consciousness and liability, Law and the Modern Mind casts new light on the meanings of freedom in the formative era of American law.
9780674048935 English 0674048938 Headline-grabbing murders are far from the only cases in which sanity has been disputed in the American courtroom. "Law and the Modern Mind" traces this history of litigation, revealing how ideas of human consciousness, agency, and responsibility have shaped American jurisprudence. Susanna Blumenthal analyzes the religious, philosophical, and medical understandings of the self that were often in conflict during these trials. In a newly independent republic, fears of a citizenry maddened by too much liberty haunted the courtroom. Judges struggled to reconcile Enlightenment rationality with new sciences of the mind suggesting that deviant behavior might result from disease rather than conscious choice. They faced serious conundrums as they attempted to apportion civil as well as criminal responsibility, aiming to protect the helpless from imposition while ensuring the security of business transactions. Defining the threshold of competence was especially vexing in litigation within the family circle, which raised uncomfortable questions about the obligations of kinship and marriage. This body of law and practice coalesced into a jurisprudence of insanity, which also illuminates the position of other categories of persons to whom the insane were compared, particularly minors, married women, and slaves. Over time, the freedom allowed to the eccentric was enlarged as jurists came to recognize the diversity of beliefs that could be held by otherwise reasonable persons. Focusing on the problematic relationship between consciousness and liability, "Law and the Modern Mind "offers a new way to understand the history of American law in its formative period., In post-revolutionary America, the autonomous individual was both the linchpin of a young nation and a threat to the founders' vision of ordered liberty. Conceiving of self-government as a psychological as well as a political project, jurists built a republic of laws upon the Enlightenment science of the mind with the aim of producing a responsible citizenry. Susanna Blumenthal probes the assumptions and consequences of this undertaking, revealing how ideas about consciousness, agency, and accountability have shaped American jurisprudence. Focusing on everyday adjudication, Blumenthal shows that mental soundness was routinely disputed in civil as well as criminal cases. Litigants presented conflicting religious, philosophical, and medical understandings of the self, intensifying fears of a populace maddened by too much liberty. Judges struggled to reconcile common sense notions of rationality with novel scientific concepts that suggested deviant behavior might result from disease rather than conscious choice. Determining the threshold of competence was especially vexing in litigation among family members that raised profound questions about the interconnections between love and consent. This body of law coalesced into a jurisprudence of insanity, which also illuminates the position of those to whom the insane were compared, particularly children, married women, and slaves. Over time, the liberties of the eccentric expanded as jurists came to recognize the diversity of beliefs held by otherwise reasonable persons. In calling attention to the problematic relationship between consciousness and liability, Law and the Modern Mind casts new light on the meanings of freedom in the formative era of American law., In postrevolutionary America, the autonomous individual was both the linchpin of a young nation and a threat to the founders'e(tm) vision of ordered liberty. Conceiving of self-government as a psychological as well as a political project, jurists built a republic of laws upon the Enlightenment science of the mind with the aim of producing a responsible citizenry. Susanna Blumenthal probes the assumptions and consequences of this undertaking, revealing how ideas about consciousness, agency, and accountability have shaped American jurisprudence. Focusing on everyday adjudication, Blumenthal shows that mental soundness was routinely disputed in civil as well as criminal cases. Litigants presented conflicting religious, philosophical, and medical understandings of the self, intensifying fears of a populace maddened by too much liberty. Judges struggled to reconcile common sense notions of rationality with novel scientific concepts that suggested deviant behavior might result from disease rather than conscious choice. Determining the threshold of competence was especially vexing in litigation among family members that raised profound questions about the interconnections between love and consent. This body of law coalesced into a jurisprudence of insanity, which also illuminates the position of those to whom the insane were compared, particularly children, married women, and slaves. Over time, the liberties of the eccentric expanded as jurists came to recognize the diversity of beliefs held by otherwise reasonable persons. In calling attention to the problematic relationship between consciousness and liability, Law and the Modern Mind casts new light on the meanings of freedom in the formative era of American law.