Biographical approaches: Using life writing as a research method
Authors: Cownie, F., Burton, M.
Publication Date: 01/01/2025
Pages: 141-160
DOI: 10.4324/9781032710372-8
Abstract:In this chapter, biographical approaches to socio-legal research are examined. Biographical writing has a long history, albeit academic suspicion of the biographical method was once widespread. It is argued that, in recent times, there has been much greater recognition of the value of biographical approaches, and this includes in legal scholarship. Whilst traditionally legal biographies focused on a white male elite – judges and eminent lawyers, more recently, biography is being used to uncover the lives of marginalised groups and individuals Feminist scholars in particular have used biographical approaches to explore the legal lives of women, and examples of this are explored in this chapter. It is argued that, biography, done well, puts the life of the subject or subjects, into their social, political and economic contexts, and requires the interdisciplinary skills of a socio-legal scholar. Autobiography and memoir writing can also be useful sources for socio-legal scholarship in general, as illustrated by the memoirs of a lay magistrates and a juror examined in this chapter.
Source: Scopus