“The Unacknowledged Legislators?” Poetry and Law

Abstract

This essay argues that poetry can and should be used by both legal professionals and students as a tool to better understand marginalised perspectives in the justice system, and foster a greater sense of empathy. Poetry has been neglected from study because of its treatment as “exceptional”; because traditional law and literature analysis favours narrative; and because poetry is largely seen as too abstract or personal to be of use. This essay argues that the way poetry can operate, with a more unconstrained use of language and less reliance on narrative, can better engage the emotional response of readers. Legal professionals and students can engage with poetry on this emotional level to bring a more empathetic and humanistic approach to their profession. This essay closes with an analysis of three poems to show how poetry can be looked at with a legal eye. The poems are Witnesses by Fleur Adcock, A Rope for Harry Fat by James K. Baxter, and Law by Charles Bukowski. Witnesses is investigated in the most depth to illustrate the usefulness of close reading. Baxter’s poem shows how real-life events can colour a reading of a poem, complicating the notion of “fictional poetry”. And Bukowski’s poem can be read as an argument against legal positivism