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< | (This is a very loose adaptation of Joseph Avery's first paper. I wanted to see if I could bring out some of his underlying concerns, especially since it received such harsh criticism.) |
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> | (This is a very loose adaptation of Joseph Avery's first paper. I wanted to see if I could bring out some of his underlying concerns in a manner that prompts more engagement in response. I do not claim to present a complete or irrefutable perspective, just one that naturally and reasonably appeals to the subjectivity of many law students. The dialectic of our class may be strengthened by open and reflective dialogue with more conservative viewpoints.) |
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| | Threshold Requirements vs. Aesthetics |
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< | Historical stages clarify basic factors in individual decision-making and tensions between them. |
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> | Characterization of historical stages clarifies driving factors in individual decision-making and tensions between them. |
| | Threshold Requirements |
| | The presence of other people raises the stakes in questions of both existence and aesthetics. They can threaten or assist one’s existence; they can disrupt one’s aesthetic or introduce possibilities and broaden horizons. Because we see the likelihood of us vs. them in general conditions of scarcity and especially aggravated ones, we only trust others to help themselves, which can rapidly devolve into a state of war. |
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< | The social contract, through the creation of an overpowering state, allows for a greater level of trust and cooperation. The system maintains a community that divides labor and tolerates opposing views. The problem of existence becomes less consuming, and people devote more time to aesthetic interests. |
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> | The social contract, through the creation of an overpowering state, allows for a greater level of trust and cooperation. The system maintains a community that divides labor and tolerates opposing views. The problem of existence becomes less consuming, and people can devote more time to aesthetic interests. |
| | 'Helping Those Who Suffer' as a Guiding Principle |
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< | This class proposes ‘helping those who suffer’ as a mode of life that will provide for our existence, yield value to others, and achieve aesthetic meaning. I will argue that this guiding principle is a difficult and possibly irresponsible leap for someone who is 25 and $180k in debt. |
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> | This class suggests ‘helping those who suffer’ as a mode of life that will provide for our existence, yield value to others, and achieve aesthetic meaning. I will argue that this guiding principle is a difficult and possibly irresponsible leap for someone who is 25 and $180k in debt. |
| | Responsibility to Meet Threshold Requirements |
| | If the overarching focus of the system is understood as benign, dissent focuses less on revolution than reform. How can rules do more to help those who suffer? Can we better balance process values in civil procedure rules given observed tendencies? What might have happened if we had allowed our banks to fail? These questions invite narrower consideration and may be better answered by people who have worked within the system. |
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< | At our inexperienced stage, it's difficult to make normative conclusions or assess goal attainability. |
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> | At our inexperienced stage, it's difficult to commit to particular normative conclusions and assess goal attainability. |
| | Aesthetic Comparisons |
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< | ‘Helping those who suffer’ is hard to argue with as an approach to meaning, but it is not and should not be the only one. We all have other unique aesthetic interests, approaches to friendship, humor, music, beauty, learning, novelty, and justice. This variety is valuable as we develop meaning in life beyond simply living. |
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> | ‘Helping those who suffer’ is hard to argue with as an approach to meaning, but it is not and should not be the only one. We all have other unique aesthetic interests, approaches to love, friendship, humor, music, beauty, learning, novelty, and justice. This variety is valuable as we develop meaning in life beyond simply living. |
| | Conclusion
By nature’s demanding design, we balance meeting threshold requirements for our family and ourselves with aesthetic pursuits that provide further meaning. A firm provides a big paycheck, rigorous training, useful contacts, and experience with the system’s deficiencies. It helps one meet the threshold barrier to freedom, beyond which one can more securely move into areas of personal or altruistic interest. |
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< | Eschewing that job requires a leap of faith. It asks us, in deep debt, to take a job that pays little, against our family's practical preferences. We claim the system is morally bankrupt, and they say, “the system does the best it can.” We say firm associates are overworked and dissatisfied, and they say, “life’s not easy.” We say we want to change the world, and they say, “try having children.” |
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> | Eschewing that job requires a leap of faith. It asks us, in deep debt, to take a job that pays substantially less, against our family's practical preferences. We claim the system is morally bankrupt, and they say, “the system does the best it can.” We say firm associates are overworked and dissatisfied, and they say, “life’s not easy.” We say we want to change the world, and they say, “try having children.” |