Law and Society

You have now learned about three classical theoretical perspectives to modern law – consensus (i.e. Durkheim), structure/rationalization (i.e. Weber) and conflict (i.e. Marx and Du Bois). Take ONE of the following recent news articles and explain which theory of law best explains the facts discussed in the article (or, alternatively, is most clearly refuted by the article). Daniel Lathrop and Anna Flagg, ″Killings of Blacks by Whites Are Far More Likely to Be Ruled ‘Justifiable,′″ New York Times, Aug. 14, 2017 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Molly Beck, ″Foxconn legal appeals go straight to Supreme Court under GOP proposal,″ Wisconsin State Journal, Sept. 6, 2017 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Serge F. Kovaleski, ″Justice Delayed: 10 Years in Jail, but Still Awaiting Trial,″ New York Times, Sept. 19, 2017 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Jessica Testa, ″Women Are Spending Years In Prison Because Wyoming Won’t Let Them Into Its All-Male Boot Camp,″ Buzzfeed.com, Sept. 19, 2017 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Shane Dixon Kavanaugh, ″′Dirty secret′ of Oregon jury system could go before U.S. Supreme Court,″ The Oregonian, Sept. 21, 2017 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Liam Stack, ″Holocaust Denier’s Sentence: Visit 5 Ex-Nazi Camps, and Write About It,″ New York Times, Sept. 22, 2017 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Your paper should choose one theory, briefly explain that theory, and demonstrate how it fits or doesn′t fit the example you choose. We are not looking for one particular ″right″ answer (one could probably make an argument that each article at least partially exemplifies each of the theories). We do want to see you make connections between a theoretical approach and a concrete example. If you feel that multiple theories might describe what′s going on, choose one as the focus of your discussion. You may bring in the other(s) briefly, but remember that this is a short paper, and we want to see that you can discuss one theory in some depth. Procedural information: Your paper should be 2-3 pages, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins and 12 point font. Papers should be written in the third person; papers should also contain an introduction and a conclusion setting out the thesis/argument of the paper. There should be no additional spaces between paragraphs.