The American Constitution and the debate over originalism / Dennis J. Goldford.
2005
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Details
Title
The American Constitution and the debate over originalism / Dennis J. Goldford.
Imprint
Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Description
1 online resource (xi, 305 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)
Formatted Contents Note
The politics of originalism
The concept of a living Constitution
Interpretivism and originalism
The paradox of originalism
The problem of objectivity
The epistemology of Constitutional discourse (I)
The epistemology of Constitutional discourse (II)
The ontology of Constitutional discourse (I)
The ontology of Constitutional discourse (II)
Conclusion: The political character of Constitutional discourse.
The concept of a living Constitution
Interpretivism and originalism
The paradox of originalism
The problem of objectivity
The epistemology of Constitutional discourse (I)
The epistemology of Constitutional discourse (II)
The ontology of Constitutional discourse (I)
The ontology of Constitutional discourse (II)
Conclusion: The political character of Constitutional discourse.
Summary
Located at the intersection of law, political science, philosophy, and literary theory, this is a work of constitutional theory that explores the nature of American constitutional interpretation through a reconsideration of the long-standing debate between the interpretive theories of originalism and nonoriginalism. It traces that debate to a particular set of premises about the nature of language, interpretation, and objectivity, premises that raise the specter of unconstrained, unstructured constitutional interpretation that has haunted contemporary constitutional theory. It presents the novel argument that a critique of the underlying premises of originalism dissolves not just originalism but nonoriginalism as well, which leads to the recognition that constitutional interpretation is already and always structured. It makes this argument in terms of the first principle of the American political system: by their fidelity to the Constitution, Americans are a textual people in that they live in and through the terms of a fundamental text.
Note
Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).
Location
WWW
Available in Other Form
Print version:
Linked Resources
Alternate Title
Cambridge Core.
Language
English
ISBN
9780511756214 ebook
9780521845588 (hardback)
9780521607797 (paperback)
9780521845588 (hardback)
9780521607797 (paperback)
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