Culver’s introduction to this section of the anthology applies to the American Realist’s generally, but he has enough to say about Holmes, our focus this time, to make the whole of it worthwhile at this point.

Holmes’s lecture will be the heart of our discussion. The chapter from Frank is an extended example that illustrates some of the points Holmes makes. Culver’s introduction will be a good guide to what you should look for, but pay special attention to (i) the idea of statements of law as predictions, to (ii) what Holmes says about the point of view of the “bad man,” and to (iii) what he says about the role of policy considerations.

If you’d like to read the whole of the Holmes lecture, you can find it in the “source browser” on the course Blackboard site. Culver’s selection cites its source as a later edition of Holmes’s book The Common Law (whose first edition was originally published before the lecture was written). That book is also a good source for examples of Holmes’ view of the law; it’s widely available on line (and, by the weekend, I expect to have a version on the source browser).