In the arts and in life, the American lawyer has mostly been an anti-hero. And that might be one of things that is eating attorneys. They have a higher rate than the general population of suicide and have seen more than their fair share of depression.
Just think about Atticus Finch in "To Kill a Mockingbird." Did his own view of the world and moral code prevent him from defending his client more effectively? After all, in the South courtroom action is performance art and Finch didn't do theatrics. To my way of thinking Finch is, like the classic anti-hero, flawed but can't or won't see it.
In life, the lawyer's job involves a moral complexity we and maybe he/she can't fully understands. As Joseph Campbell observes, "The moral complexity of the anti-hero causes us to question the limits of our own moral integrity." The only absolute right seems to be to be best advocate for the client.
Anti heroes can be very compelling, attractive people. Those range from John Wayne to Alan Dershowitz. However, they might have a tough time keeping separate the professional role they play and who they are. But, so do many of us. Maybe that's why we spend so much time preoccupied with lawyers and the law they create.
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