I just spotted this article on the Guardian website:
It struck me as an outstanding example of the use of narrative language in oral advocacy. Amanda Knox has been found guilty of the murder of Meredith Kercher. The prosecution case was based on a narrative in which Amanda (and others) stabbed the victim to death in a sex game which went very wrong. Amanda's legal team is seeking to overturn the conviction. Both the prosecution and the defence are painting some pretty colourful pictures of Knox.
Knox's lawyer has portrayed her as Jessica Rabbit. As in the beautiful, provocative cartoon lady in the 1988 Robert Zemeckis movie “Who Framed Roger Rabbit”. As the article notes, this is almost (but perhaps not quite) intimating that Knox has herself been framed. This link is quite clever as it reflects well on Amanda, who her team are trying to show as a victim. But the analogy comes at a price. They have to connect Amanda (who remember is, for the moment, a convicted sex-game-playing-murderer) with a provocative and suspect cartoon woman. Is that really the image they want the judges to have of her?
Similarly, the prosecution have apparently described her as an “enchanting witch”. This I find much more objectionable.
I’m reminded of high school history lessons when we learnt about how (several hundred years ago) we used to burn outcast women as “witches”. Does it strike anyone else, that in using this phrase, the proecution lawyers are aligning themselves with some pretty unattractive characters from history?
I'm glad I'm not the only Robert Zemeckis aficionados!!!
ReplyDeleteThe image from the defence does seem to shoot themselves in the foot, a bit. If the prosecution wished to use an image to mean someone who appears innocent and enchanting but is actually evil - a whitewashed tomb, as it were - they might have considered the international stage on which their remarks would appear, and chosen a less chauvinistic turn of phrase.
ReplyDeleteNarrative language can cut the wrong way, it would seem.
This case is ridiculous. I've been following it for a while and it's pretty upsetting. I was an Italian minor in undergrad and love everything about Italy, but they have some serious flaws in their legal and political systems. I'm not saying the defendants are absolutely innocent because I really don't know, but all the evidence against them has been questionable from the very beginning. I can't imagine this kind of case ever going to trial in the US.
ReplyDeleteSorry for the rant.