Spaces of Law and Custom

This collection explores the complex relationship between law and custom,and the material spaces they inhabit. It brings together researchers from various disciplines to examine how normativity develops within these contexts and shapes them. The book highlights the locatedness of law and custom within the power dynamics of particular spaces and provides a cross-disciplinary toolkit for understanding law and custom. It will be of interest to legal theorists, legal historians, anthropologists, sociologists, historians, geographers, and developmental economists.

Format: Hardback
Length: 202 pages
Publication date: 15 July 2021
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This comprehensive collection brings together a diverse group of scholars from various fields, including law, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, history, social ontology, and international relations, to explore the intricate interplay between law and custom within specific material and spatial contexts. Normativity emerges and is shaped by these contexts, permeating all physical spaces, from traditional agrarian realms to modern, shifting post-industrial workplaces. The contributions gathered in this volume offer a rich tapestry of examples from diverse disciplinary perspectives, aimed at examining the dynamic relationship between custom and law and the material spaces they inhabit. While the conclusions drawn regarding this relationship vary across different material realities, a recurring theme emerges: a proper understanding of law and custom stems from their material situatedness within the power dynamics of particular spaces, which, in turn, are reflexively shaped by that same normativity.

The book thus provides a comprehensive account of the localized nature of law and custom, and indeed, of custom as a source of law. By delving into these interconnected explorations, it offers a valuable cross-disciplinary toolkit of concepts and critical tools for understanding law and custom, as well as their relationship.

As evidenced by the diverse range of contributors, this book holds immense appeal to legal theorists from diverse traditions, legal historians, anthropologists, sociologists, historians, geographers, and developmental economists alike. Its insights and methodologies will undoubtedly contribute to advancing our understanding of the complex dynamics between law, custom, and the broader social and cultural landscapes.

Weight: 460g
Dimension: 161 x 241 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367344498