Happy birthday on 30th May to Burton Hanson, whose weblog Burtlaw’s Law and Everything Else does not separate law and literature – rather like Mortimer’s Rumpole of the Bailey, links for whom are provided under the category Law and Brits.
Here is a list of the categories:
bq. Daily Quick Links – Daily Quotes – Daily Poem -BurtLaw’s Places – Featured Sites – Greatest Quotes On Law – Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Laws – Law and Justice Holmes – Law And Love I & II – Law And Kissing – Law And Poetry – Legal Writing – Romantic Flicks I & II – Rockin’ Rand Recommends – Court Gazing I & II & III & IV & V – Judging – Mandatory Retirement of Judges – Judicial Economics – Judicial Independence & Accountability – Judicial Elections – Lawyers On Parade – Law And Economics – Legal Secretaries – BurtLaw’s Legal History – Secular Sermons – Law & Christmas – Law and Women – Law And Kids – Fathers And Kids – Law And Norwegians – Law and Brits – Law And Dogs – Animals – Law & Death – Law & Comics – Law and Friends – Law and Swimsuits – Crime And Punishment – Capital Punishment – BurtLaw’s CaseLaw – Politics – Harvard Law School – War I & II & III & IV – About BRH – About Mathilda Wonder Dog – Contact BRH
‘Law and Poetry’ seems a bit lacking in law (although it has a couple of Hanson’s own verses for Valentine’s Day).
Pity about Law & Poetry being thin on the ground. I am reminded of the late Swinging-Sixties Poet and Eng. Solicitor, Roy Fuller, who used to claim there wasn’t much difference between drafting legal documents and writing poetry. If it hadn’t been for John Betjeman active at the same time, he might have been Poet Laureate.
There are also the literary giants Charles Dickens and Honore de Balzac who started out as Law Clerks. I can’t recall any poetry written by them, though Balzac’s novels are arguably long, epic poems.
I’m sure there are other plenty of other acknowledged writers who started out as lawyers or studying law and not the other way round.
Adrian, a v. minor Earls Court poet published in the Regency Press in 1968.
I thought of E.T.A.Hoffmann. I quite like Fuller.
Did you publish a volume? I used to write poetry myself, more at school and university than after. Things don’t seem to present themselves to me as poems nowadays.
Thanks for the reminder about Mishcon de Reya, Mole and Greenlaw, Margaret.
I’m still amazed that Roy Fuller – my poet-lawyer role model and career inspiration as a poetry-scribbling law undergraduate – doesn’t feature on Burtlaw’s website.
No. I didn’t have a volume published, but had 4 poems included in a hardbound anthology. One of them later won 2nd prize (2nd best as usual)in a UK nationwide competition. I haven’t received any royalties so far. Instead I – to my father’s financial annoyance – had to pay GBP 5 for the privilege of having each one published! You know the scam ad. in newspapers & magazines : ‘Authors and poets have your works published’.
Besides student publications, there were also memorable Earls Court poetry readings at the UK Poetry Society and Troubador Bohemian Cafe.
Good heavens – I once read a poem at the Troubadour – that takes me back. You got a free drink, I seem to remember. I joined the Poetry Society but didn’t go to any readings. Poetry readings have taken on a life of their own now.