Narrative, law and emotion: husband killers in early nineteenth-century Ireland
Files
(Submitted version)
Date
2017
Authors
Barclay, K.
Editors
Advisors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Type:
Journal article
Citation
Journal of Legal History, 2017; 38(2):203-227
Statement of Responsibility
Katie Barclay
Conference Name
Abstract
Scholars of emotion and the law have sought to demonstrate the significant role emotion plays in shaping the operation of courtrooms, the
development of legal theory and practice, and the possibilities for justice.
This paper contributes to the discussion by exploring what happens when
emotion is ignored or underplayed in trial narratives, seeking to
demonstrate that whose emotion is considered to be important can shed
light on power dynamics, law and the cultures in which law operates. It
does so through a case study of women on trial for murdering their
husbands in early nineteenth-century Ireland. It argues that emotion is not
simply another species of evidence that can be used in criminal processes, but itself a type of narrative – emotion is constructed and performed by actors in legal dramas and forms a competing story to others in the courtroom space.
School/Discipline
Dissertation Note
Provenance
Description
Access Status
Rights
© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group