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Examines exclusion from law as an enduring tactic of state power, and literature's longstanding role in representing and critiquing such exclusion
Outlawry and espionage would seem to be quite different phenomena, rarely discussed together, but this book shows that they have something in common - both involve exclusion from law. Challenging previous readings that view outlawry as a now-superseded historical phenomenon, and outlaws as figures of popular resistance, Conor McCarthy argues that legal exclusion is a longstanding and enduring means of supporting state power.
Through close analysis of the literatures of outlawry and espionage, this book shows the important role of literature in representing and critiquing exclusion from law. It uncovers legal exclusion as a key theme in writing about outlaws and spies from the Middle Ages to the present day, as a means to offer critique and to demand justice.
Texts discussed range from the medieval Robin Hood ballads, Shakespeare's history plays and versions of the Ned Kelly story to contemporary writing by John le Carré, Don DeLillo, Ciaran Carson and William Gibson.
Key Features
. Reads exclusion from law in relation to questions of power, sovereignty and the state
. Draws on the work of philosophers Giorgio Agamben, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, historian Eric Hobsbawm and a range of legal thinkers
. Engages with a range of primary legal texts from the medieval (Anglo-Saxon laws, Bracton) to 20th- and 21st-century legislation from the US, UK and Australia
Conor McCarthy received his PhD from Trinity College Dublin, and is Director of Philanthropy at the National Library of Australia.
List of contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
- Outside the Law in the Middle Ages
- Sovereign Outlaws: Shakespeare's Second Tetralogy
- The Endurance of Exclusion: Versions of Ned Kelly
- 'We're not policemen': Espionage and Law in John le Carré
- 'All plots tend to move deathward': Plots and Consequences in Don DeLillo
- Unanswered Questions: Ciaran Carson
- Contesting the Virtual: William Gibson
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Conor McCarthy is Director of Philanthropy at the National Library of Australia. He holds a PhD from Trinity College, Dublin. His previous books are
Love, Sex and Marriage in the Middle Ages: A Sourcebook,
Marriage in Medieval England: Law, Literature and Practice, and
Seamus Heaney and Medieval Poetry.
Summary
Conor McCarthy shows how outlaw literature and espionage literature critique the use of legal exclusion as a means of supporting state power. Texts discussed range from the medieval Robin Hood ballads, Shakespeare's history plays and the Ned Kelly story to John le Carre, Don DeLillo, Ciaran Carson and William Gibson.
