Law as Literature, Literature as Law c. 1200-1700

In Measure for Measure, Shakespeare's severe justice Angelo urges the problems that might arise from a static conception of the law: 'We must not make a scarecrow of the law, setting it up to fear the birds of prey and let it keep one shape till custom make it their perch and not their terror' (2.1.1-4). Despite Angelo's temporary authority and corrupt nature, the play illustrates literature's abi...