Homo Juridicus: On the Anthropological Function of the Law

by Alain Supiot, Saskia Brown (Translator)

A provocative investigation of how law shapes everyday life.

In this groundbreaking work, French legal scholar Alain Supiot examines the relationship of society to legal discourse. He argues that religion and the state no longer underwrite fundamental values, and consequently that the law functions as the sole arbiter of human relations. Supiot's exploration of the development of the "legal subject" - the individual as formed through a dense web of contracts and laws - is set to become a classic work of social theory.

Genres: Anthropology, Law, Nonfiction, Politics

246 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Vishal Misra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alain Supiot delivers a book here that is magnificently readable, and also accessible to the layperson. This is no small feat, since the underpinnings of the book are fundamentally the major questions of jurisprudence: what is law? What is the purpose of law?

Supiot starts his enquiry with looking at the foundations of law. From the outset, it is made clear that Supiot is keeping his focus on the roots of Western law, although this does not prevent him from making comparative analysis between the legal traditions of other cultures. However, the law for Supiot, is predominantly a blend of Roman Law and Western Christianity. Therefore, we start from a position of what makes the human, and the importance of understanding the symbolism inherent in defining humans as that which is in the image of God. From here, Supiot charts how law is spread, especially the correlation of the rise of the rule of law (as guaranteed by the nation state) and the decline of God. This is an important section, and deals very well with the paradoxes that secularisation of the law throws up.

Finally, part I ends with an analysis of the rise of the Contract. Much legal scholarship has been dedicated to the perils and merits of contractualisation, and I do not propose to go into them in this review. But suffice to say, that the rise of the contract has much to answer for in terms of the growing nature of the globalised "free market" and the increased atomisation of the individual.

The second part of the book is where it takes off. Supiot here argues that the law, as an anthropological technique and structure, is the unique position to interdict between technological process (after all, science, capitalism and the global "free market" go hand in glove), and humanity. The law can serve to "humanise" technology, in Supiot's world. He cites the advent of labour law to temper the rise of the machines in the industrial revolution, and its more contemporary forays in to health and safety at work.

Finally, we end with a discussion of human rights. Here Supiot's book glitters like the diamond that it is. Neatly laid out are the tensions that arise when "Universal Human Rights" are cited, particularly the UNDHR, which is ultimately a system of laws and rights conceived in the West, and ultimately behave as a new "imago dei", with the WASP male firmly at the Godhead. Supiot walks through the different types of Human Rights fundamentalists, and how Rights are co-opted by such people to portray others as defective, in need of the paternal rights conferred upon them, and protected by the West. This breeds the kindling awaiting the spark of resisting forms of fundamentalism, e.g. within the Middle East.

Supiot makes a radical call for an openness to interpretation of human rights for all, one which can be placed above Hayek's "free market" to temper it, and also to allow for multiple conceptions of human rights to enter the jurisprudential sphere, allowing for richer and more meaningful human rights to be elucidated and enjoyed by all.

[Avery · Rating 3 out of 5]

I opened up the first pages of this and was immediately intrigued to discover that Verso Books, which is almost exclusively a publisher of socialist theory, had translated and published a work of Guénonian traditionalism. I am a bit curious as to how this happened; it is certainly not a left-wing book in the ordinary sense. However, I think this may be the most noteworthy thing about this book. The author is enamored with the difference between civil law and natural or divine law, and tries to emphasize the value of civil law as a uniquely Western ideal, while welcoming global and anti-capitalist critiques of it. His detailing of the function of civil law was not particularly inspiring to me, at least compared to Guénon's more incisive and timeless work. I would say that the book is a product of its political moment (2007) and feels a bit outdated given the stage of globalization and collapse we are now arriving in.

[Cemre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beklentimin altında kalan, bazı yerleri "haydi bitsin şu bölüm" diye okuduğum, yani özetle pek keyif almadan okuduğum bir kitap oldu. Bunda benim İş Hukuku'nu, daha doğrusu genel olarak Aile Hukuku haricinde özel hukuku, sevmemem de etkili oldu. Alain Supiot bir iş hukukçusu ve konuları ister istemez bu alana hep bağlamış. Bir de yer yer işin içine diğer sevmediğim bir alan olan iktisadı sokmuş. Hal böyle olunca ben de umduğumu bulamadan, biraz da zorlayarak bitirdim kitabı. Dikkat çekici noktalar yok mu, elbette var; özellikle son bölümü diğer bölümlere oranla daha büyük bir zevkle okudum; ama dediğim gibi, genel olarak beklentimi karşılamadı.

[Elise · Rating 5 out of 5]

eye-opening work - well documented, fundamental. An absolute must for anyone thinking about sense and direction in our society.

And well-written, which is a plus: a real pleasure to read.

[Blackcal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Difficile d'accès pour les non-initiés

[Eurethius Péllitièr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting analysis of the attachment to law but the conclusion is not fleshed out

[Bayram Erdem · Rating 2 out of 5]

Antropoloji kitabı diye aldım ama içinde hukuk üzerine yazılmış makaleler var. Onlardan da çok bir şey anlamadım. Kitap adı yanıltıcı olabilir.

[Mariam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting.

[Faisal Jamal · Rating 3 out of 5]

علاقة الانسان بالقانون بعد تراجع دور الدين (لدى الغرب) في الحياة