Detached, Yet Welcoming: The Antinomy of Asceticism and Humanity in the Social Representation of Dignity of a Judge

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216224%3A14220%2F25%3A00140927" target="_blank" >RIV/00216224:14220/25:00140927 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://is.muni.cz/publication/2488539/" target="_blank" >https://is.muni.cz/publication/2488539/</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11196-024-10227-y" target="_blank" >10.1007/s11196-024-10227-y</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Detached, Yet Welcoming: The Antinomy of Asceticism and Humanity in the Social Representation of Dignity of a Judge

Original language description

Recent studies on the social representation of a judge’s dignity (Smejkalová et al., 2022, 2024) reveal that it is expressed through a distinct public persona (Goffman, 1954). The core elements of this persona include two seemingly contradictory themes: Asceticism — where a judge is depicted as detached, formal, and restrained — and Humanity — where a judge is open, empathetic, and tolerant. These opposing qualities form a significant conceptual tension. At first, it may seem paradoxical for a judge to embody both detachment and empathy. However, Marková (2003) explains that such tensions are fundamental to social representations, as they arise from conflicting ideas and images generated through human communication. This paper explores these findings through the lens of Marková’s concept of dialogicality, suggesting that understanding the concept of a dignity of a judge in legal practice requires recognizing these inherent conflicts and their ad hoc resolutions. By examining the apparent contradiction between Asceticism and Humanity, I will contextualize these themes within the specific framework of the Czech legal system and its approach to constructing judicial legitimacy. This involves applying Loth’s (2007) theory of input/output legitimacy, as adapted by Smejkalová (2021) for the Czech judiciary. The aim is to provide a new interpretive framework that expands on Smejkalová et al.’s (2024) findings and highlights the necessity of using social representation theory to understand the social dimensions of legal meaning, including the “legal scene” in which the meaning-making tensions are manifested and negotiated.

Czech name

—

Czech description

—

Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

—

OECD FORD branch

50501 - Law

Project

<a href="/en/project/EH22_008%2F0004595" target="_blank" >EH22_008/0004595: Beyond Security: Role of Conflict in Resilience-Building</a><br>

Continuities

P - Projekt vyzkumu a vyvoje financovany z verejnych zdroju (s odkazem do CEP)

Publication year

2025

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

International Journal for the Semiotics of Law - Revue internationale de Sémiotique juridique

ISSN

0952-8059

e-ISSN

1572-8722

Volume of the periodical

38

Issue of the periodical within the volume

27 March

Country of publishing house

GB - UNITED KINGDOM

Number of pages

24

Pages from-to

1-24

UT code for WoS article

001454874500001

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-105001260349