Society and Law

(Paperback)

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Description

Society and Law addresses the social context of law, the legal structure, and the relationships between society and law. The goal of this text is to help undergraduate students gain an understanding of the significant role law plays in our everyday lives and in larger society. It covers emerging theories and ideas from innovative fields such as critical legal studies, feminist jurisprudence, critical race theories, and intersectionality. Society & Law summarizes the material as succinctly as possible, incorporating examples of new laws, changes in laws, and legal cases that interest college students and help them connect the material to their own lives. The law can be fascinating, frustrating, and even funny. Society & Law presents these various aspects of the law in readable, understandable, and interesting ways.

Features:

Student-oriented pedagogy includes key terms and a complete glossary, chapter summaries, critical thinking questions, and movie suggestions Case-in-Point boxes provide extended examples that illustrate key points Legalese boxes define legal terminologySidebar boxes provide additional information about select concepts

Reviews

Hayden (criminal justice, Merrimack College) has written a reader-friendly textbook for undergraduates in courses in sociology, criminology, criminal justice, and social justice. Intended to engage students on a personal level, the book is jam-packed with figures, black-and-white photos, cartoons, and other visuals. Especially helpful is the highlighting in bold of important key terms defined in an extensive glossary. Special features found in every chapter include summaries, critical thinking questions, and movie suggestions. Other pedagogical tools are "Case in Point" boxes that provide extended examples, "Legalese" boxes that define legal terms, and "Sidebar" boxes that explain legal concepts. Many examples and cases are related to Massachusetts. . . Hayden does a good job of overlaying topics of relevance to law and the legal system, including the rule of law, the organization of law, lawmaking, dispute processing, and the legal profession. The chapters on the legal constructions of gender and race are insightful. Though intended as textbook, the volume might find use as a secondary resource for those studying social justice.



Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates.

Author Bio

Karen E. Hayden is professor and chair of the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts. She teaches and writes about society and law, girls, women, and crime, images of rural people and places in popular culture, and rural crime.