Law and Society (206-0-20)
Instructors
Joanna Lynn Grisinger
847 491 3987
620 Lincoln St #201
I am an American legal historian who works on the modern administrative state. At Northwestern, I teach courses on law and society, U.S. legal history, gender and the law, and constitutional law. My first book, The Unwieldy American State: Administrative Politics since the New Deal (Cambridge, 2012), examines the politics of administrative law reform; I am currently working on a project about the relationship between administrative agencies and social movements.
Meeting Info
Fisk Hall 217: Tues, Thurs 2:00PM - 3:20PM
Overview of class
Legal St 206 "Law & Society" Prof. Joanna Grisinger
Law is everywhere. Law permits, prohibits, enables, legitimates,protects, and prosecutes. Law shapes our day-to-day lives incountless ways. This course examines the connections andrelationships of law and society using an interdisciplinary socialscience approach. As one of the founders of the Law and Societymovement observed, "law is too important to leave to lawyers."Accordingly, this course will borrow from several theoretical,disciplinary, and interdisciplinary perspectives (such as sociology,history, anthropology, political science, and critical studies) in order toexplore the sociology of law and law's role primarily in the Americancontext. The thematic topics to be discussed include law and socialcontrol; law's role in social change; and law's capacity to reach intocomplex social relations and intervene in existing normativeinstitutions and organizational structures.
Cross-listed with Sociology 206-0
Learning Objectives
By the end of the course, students will be able to: 1. Recognize andarticulate reciprocal relationships in the US legal system betweensocietal forces, psychological forces, and the behaviors of individualsand groups, including one's position within these relationships,forces, and structures. 2. Demonstrate knowledge andunderstanding of major sociological and philosophical theories of lawas related to the influence of culture and power on the behavior ofindividuals, interpersonal relationships, and group dynamics 3.Reflect upon the way in which the field of legal studies helpsilluminate the factors underlying social issues, social problems, andethical dilemmas in the United States. 4. Engage with sociolegalscholarship that addresses societal issues in the United States,including the historical and contemporary structures, processes, andpractices that shape racism and anti-racism; power and resistance;justice and injustice; equality and inequality; agency and subjection;and belonging and subjection.
Teaching Method
Lecture and Discussion sections
Evaluation Method
short papers and take home, open book midterm and final
Class Materials (Required)
Calavita, Kitty. Invitation to Law & Society: An Introduction to theStudy of Real Law. 2nd ed. University of Chicago Press, 2016. 978-0-226-29658-6
Class Attributes
Social and Behavioral Science Foundational Discipl
U.S. Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity
Social & Behavioral Sciences Distro Area
Associated Classes
DIS - Parkes Hall 214: Tues 4:00PM - 4:50PM
DIS - Parkes Hall 215: Tues 5:00PM - 5:50PM
DIS - Willard Hall B72: Wed 11:00AM - 11:50AM
DIS - Frances Searle Building 2107: Wed 1:00PM - 1:50PM
DIS - Parkes Hall 224: Wed 2:00PM - 2:50PM
DIS - Parkes Hall 224: Wed 4:00PM - 4:50PM