Book contents
- The Everyday Makers of International Law
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law: 170
- The Everyday Makers of International Law
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 Carnegieplein 2, 10:00 am
- 2 Coffee, Cigarettes, and International Judicial Practices
- 3 A New Generation of Litigators
- 4 Telling a Story
- 5 The Invisible Army
- 6 The Three Wise Monkeys
- 7 The Lyophilization of Life
- 8 The Memo
- 9 To Capture the World
- 10 Bricolage
- 11 The Explorer
- 12 A Four-Letter Word
- 13 What Does It Mean…
- 14 The Stage
- 15 The Moment of (Constructed) Truth
- 16 Truth Woven Together
- 17 Spijkermakersstraat 9, 8:00 pm
- Index
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law
13 - What Does It Mean…
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 November 2022
- The Everyday Makers of International Law
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law: 170
- The Everyday Makers of International Law
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 Carnegieplein 2, 10:00 am
- 2 Coffee, Cigarettes, and International Judicial Practices
- 3 A New Generation of Litigators
- 4 Telling a Story
- 5 The Invisible Army
- 6 The Three Wise Monkeys
- 7 The Lyophilization of Life
- 8 The Memo
- 9 To Capture the World
- 10 Bricolage
- 11 The Explorer
- 12 A Four-Letter Word
- 13 What Does It Mean…
- 14 The Stage
- 15 The Moment of (Constructed) Truth
- 16 Truth Woven Together
- 17 Spijkermakersstraat 9, 8:00 pm
- Index
- Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law
Summary
This chapter concludes the discussion of interpretation by focusing on the emotions and mental processes of the interpreter. Each case presents at least one dilemma that cannot be solved through pure legal deduction. What options, then, does the interpreter have? First, they will seek the illusory comfort of legal objectivity, and convince themselves that the answer is out there, buried somewhere in the record. But it is not. Second, the interpreter will try to exercise responsible agency and provide an answer that best resonates with their ethical or political commitments. But the interpreter does not really know which interpretive outcome is preferable. Third, the interpreter will turn to the standard practices of the community and write pages upon pages of corollary analysis, hoping that the intractable issue will magically vanish. Finally, the interpreter will stick to their decision and defend it as the sole logical solution.
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- The Everyday Makers of International LawFrom Great Halls to Back Rooms, pp. 245 - 255Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2022