Another metapragmatic note: throughout the book, I would advise readers who are
interested in some of the more technical points to focus on the notes. In the interests of
creating a more accessible text, I have relegated many of the more technical points to the
endnotes.
- This combination has produced a data set that is quite rich, which I will continue
to mine in future work on the intersection of language, socialization, and institutional
practices. - As will be explained later in the book, I take the notion of a “double edge” from
the work of Moishe Postone, which carries forward the Frankfurt School tradition. At the
same time, I think somewhat similar notions can be found in the work of both Weber and
Durkheim (see below). - I am indebted in particular on this point to Susan Hirsch, a leading anthropolo-
gist of language and law whose work on Kenyan courts has served as a model for our field.
Hirsch’s research carefully delineates how the language of law can simultaneously perpetu-
ate domination and yet also open possibilities for resistance, because “there are always gaps
to be exploited by those who seek a hearing for their experiences.” Hirsch, Pronouncing
and Persevering, 246. I have also been influenced more directly by Hirsch’s insightful com-
ments on my work, nudging me to think more thoroughly about the “cultural dominance”
half of this dichotomy. Hirsch, “Making Culture Visible,” 127. Discussions with Leti Volpp,
as well as my reading of her work, also helped to underscore this point for me. Volpp,
“(Mis)Identifying Culture.” - See discussion in Chapter 2; also see, for example, work by the Scollons linking
discourse and worldviews. Scollon and Scollon, Intercultural Communication. As noted in
the text, at the level of linguistic analysis, this study offers insights into the very subtle ways
metalinguistic filtering can operate to convey or alter worldviews and norms, particularly
in settings of initiation or socialization into new identities. - Levi, Introduction.
- This sketch is obviously designed to highlight some of the more dramatic examples
of the overall process described in this book; as we will see, the day-to-day reorientation
of students is generally more mundane and subtle. This “ideal typical” vignette merely helps
to crystallize some of the patterns documented in less crude form throughout the rest of
the book. On the merits of ideal types, see Weber, Economy and Society. However, note
that the dialogue and examples in this vignette are taken from actual transcripts and re-
ported real-life instances. - These exchanges are taken from Transcript 4/1/1–7.
- Transcript 6/2/1.
- Transcript 1/7/9.
- Williams, Alchemy, 85.
- Id., 84.
- See Stover, Making It and Breaking It; Erlanger et al., “Law Student Idealism”;
Erlanger and Klegon, “Socialization Effects,” for discussions of declining student concern
with altruism and public interest during law school. - There is a debate in the literature over the causes of the documented shift away
from public interest work during law school; some attribute this to diminishing interest
from law students as they become more indoctrinated by law school training (and as they
eye the pay differential between public interest and more lucrative jobs); others attribute
it to a diminishing supply of public interest jobs. (See note 15 above.) This book points to
aspects of legal training and epistemology that in themselves might contribute to a shift
away from public interest ambitions.
226 Notes to Pages 4–11