Additional information
by Kenji Yoshino (Author)
"Fascinating....Loaded with perceptive and provocative comments on Shakespeare's plots, characters, and contemporary analogs."
--Justice John Paul Stevens, Supreme Court of the United States
"Kenji Yoshino is the face and the voice of the new civil rights."
--Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Nickled and Dimed
A Thousand Times More Fair is a highly inventive and provocative exploration of ethics and the law that uses the plays of William Shakespeare as a prism through which to view the nature of justice in our contemporary lives. Celebrated law professor and author Kenji Yoshino delves into ten of the most important works of the Immortal Bard of Avon, offering prescient and thought-provoking discussions of lawyers, property rights, vengeance (legal and otherwise), and restitution that have tremendous significance to the defining events of our times--from the O.J. Simpson trial to Abu Ghraib. Anyone fascinated by important legal and social issues--as well as fans of Shakespeare-centered bestsellers like Will in the World--will find A Thousand Times More Fair an exceptionally rewarding reading experience.
This incisive analysis of Shakespeare and the law explores:
- Revenge and the Rule of Law: How Titus Andronicus illuminates the bloody cycles of vengeance from ancient feuds to the modern war on terror.
- The Power of Legal Rhetoric: A sharp analysis of Portia in The Merchant of Venice and how a lawyer's persuasive skill can bend the law, with parallels to the Clinton scandal.
- Fact-Finding and Bias: Why the "ocular proof" of a handkerchief in Othello holds the same dangerous power as the bloody glove in the O.J. Simpson trial.
- The Burden of Sovereignty: A journey through the Henriad, showing how Prince Hal's transformation into Henry V offers a masterclass in establishing legitimate authority.
- Justice, Mercy, and Madness: How the tragedies of Measure for Measure and King Lear test the absolute limits of human law and divine justice.
Front Jacket
Celebrated legal scholar Kenji Yoshino's first book, Covering, was acclaimed--from the New York Times Book Review to O, The Oprah Magazine to the American Lawyer--for its elegant prose, its good humor, and its brilliant insights into civil rights and discrimination law. Now, in A Thousand Times More Fair, Yoshino turns his attention to the question of what makes a fair and just society, and delves deep into a surprising source to answer it: Shakespeare's greatest plays. Through fresh and insightful readings of Measure for Measure, Titus Andronicus, Othello, and others, he addresses the fundamental questions we ask about our world today and elucidates some of the most troubling issues in contemporary life.
Enormously creative, engaging, and provocative, A Thousand Times More Fair is an altogether original book about Shakespeare and the law, and an ideal starting point to explore the nature of a just society-and our own.
--Judge Richard A. PosnerBack Jacket
Celebrated legal scholar Kenji Yoshino's first book, Covering, was acclaimed--from the New York Times Book Review to O, The Oprah Magazine to the American Lawyer--for its elegant prose, its good humor, and its brilliant insights into civil rights and discrimination law. Now, in A Thousand Times More Fair, Yoshino turns his attention to the question of what makes a fair and just society, and delves deep into a surprising source to answer it: Shakespeare's greatest plays. Through fresh and insightful readings of Measure for Measure, Titus Andronicus, Othello, and others, he addresses the fundamental questions we ask about our world today and elucidates some of the most troubling issues in contemporary life.
Enormously creative, engaging, and provocative, A Thousand Times More Fair is an altogether original book about Shakespeare and the law, and an ideal starting point to explore the nature of a just society-and our own.
