Shannon Johnson and Dr. Jesse Crisler, English
Until a few years ago, scholars had done little research on legal themes in fiction, especially adolescent fiction. Lately, however, interest in the relationship between law and literature has increased. Law professors are starting to use works of literature in their teaching. English professors are sponsoring courses on legal themes in literature and the rhetoric of law. But in all the excitement of these new trends, little has been said about the relationship between law and adolescent literature.
Literature provides a way for children and teenagers to gain more understanding about legal issues. Ian Ward insists that literature “guides and educates, constrains and liberates” (117). He mentions that books children are exposed to in their growing years are the most influential and important they will ever encounter (90). Since most opinions and ideas develop in those early stages of life, the writers of adolescent fiction have a responsibility to provide an accurate representation of the world for their young audience.
Current popular culture presents lawyers as either “solutionless objects of disdain and contempt” or as “noble, even heroic” defenders of the truth (Freeman 356). Both these extreme depictions can be tempered by combining law with literature. Because literature is an art, it allows more freedom to explore the possibilities of the law. Literature creates a fictional reality in which readers may see the results of the social meaning of the law and experiment with them. Adolescents thrive on narrative. Many agree that words are powerful and that the child audience is particularly receptive and impressionable (Ward 92).
My research focuses on the depiction of law and lawyers in adolescent literature. I approached this project very methodically. I first researched the history of criticism of adolescent literature as well as the relationship between law and literature. I wanted to be familiar with the prominent works and theories in both disciplines to insure that as I melded the two fields I would stay as true to both as possible. Another concept I felt obligated to study was reader response. The culmination of the research depends heavily on how depictions of the law and lawyers in adolescent literature affect the readers of these works.
I read over thirty prominent works of adolescent fiction to determine how lawyers and the law were portrayed in these works. Some books centered on courtroom drama. Mildred Taylor’s Let the Circle Be Unbroken and Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird both involve detailed trials. Other works, such as Holes by Louis Sachar and The Lottery Rose by Irene Hunt, only mentioned the law or lawyers briefly. Still other adolescent books do not directly mention the existing law or lawyers, but the characters set up their own societies and create their own justice systems. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies and John Knowles’ A Separate Peace both involve groups of boys that create their own societies.
The most intimidating part of the research was developing a method of organizing and combining all the information I gathered. After much trial and error, I came up with a system of classification that helped me systemize my research. By creating different categories and subcategories to focus on, I was able to identify what each work of adolescent fiction represented in the realm of law and literature.
I first examined Lawyers as Professionals in adolescent literature. The descriptions of lawyers as professionals vary according to the purpose of the character in the novel. If the lawyer provides legal representation for the protagonist or his/her family, the lawyer is usually depicted as a very likeable individual. If the legal professional conflicts with the main character, adolescent work typically present an unattractive, stereotypical lawyer figure.
Lawyers as People was my second category to research. In adolescent literature lawyers sometimes appear not only as professionals, but also as real people. As characters, they take on roles of parents, siblings, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. It is crucial for readers of adolescent literature to be able to see lawyers out of the courtroom and depicted as “normal,” everyday people. Within this category, it was interesting to observe how lawyers treat others, lawyers as parents, evidence of lawyers’ characters, evident weaknesses, and how the legal profession invades home life.
The conclusions I came to were quite different from my original hypotheses. Initially, I was certain I’d discover that authors use and abuse lawyer stereotypes throughout adolescent literature. But I found the majority of writers and editors seem to be aware of the responsibility they have in shaping young people’s opinions. Lawyers who represent the protagonist generally are drawn as real people, though opposing lawyers are often depicted as the “enemy” and the major antagonists in the work. It is interesting to note that attorneys who represent the protagonists in adolescent literature typically fall into one of four categories: 1) female, 2) minority, 3) fresh out of law school, or 4) widower. This helps endear the characters to the reader.
As more complicated issues invade the genre of juvenile fiction, authors will be forced to move away from depicting lawyers as either “good” or “bad.” Instead, adolescent literature will evolve into a more complex and multi-faceted form of literature.
Though I read most of the well-known works in adolescent literature that deal with lawyers and the law, I cannot label my findings as comprehensive. Many more books need to be examined for a comprehensive study.