Literary narratives about crime and the criminal have both glamorized the outlaw and idealized the restoration of law and order. Students will examine how literary narratives frame the figure of the outlaw in order to: contemplate the relationship between the individual and law, as well as between outlaw communities and the law; shape popular understandings of the law and the consequences of breaking the law; interrogate the law's absolute claim to justice; examine the cost of policing to maintain law and order; and/or critique state power by giving voice to the marginalized.
Literary narratives about crime and the criminal have both glamorized the outlaw and idealized the restoration of law and order. Students will examine how literary narratives frame the figure of the outlaw in order to: contemplate the relationship between the individual and law, as well as between outlaw communities and the law; shape popular understandings of the law and the consequences of breaking the law; interrogate the law's absolute claim to justice; examine the cost of policing to maintain law and order; and/or critique state power by giving voice to the marginalized.
