Document Type

Working Paper

Publication Date

11-30-2011

SSRN Discipline

Legal Scholarship Network; PSN Subject Matter eJournals; Social Insurance Research Network; Law School Research Papers - Legal Studies; LSN Subject Matter eJournals; Law School Research Papers - Public Law & Legal Theory; Constitutional Law, Jurisprudence & Legal Philosophy eJournals; Political Institutions eJournals; Political Science Network

Abstract

This light essay takes a jaunty twostep beyond textualism and beyond intratextualism and offers a new approach to constitutional interpretation intraintratextualism Just as textualism involves taking the whole text of the Constitution seriously and intratextualism involves taking the words of the Constitution seriously so intraintratextualism proposes that we take the letters of the Constitution seriously Inspired by Boggle and by the various texttwist type games I cant seem to stop playing on my Iphone intraintratextualism or Our Boggling Constitution argues that if the words of the Constitution have authoritative interpretive meaning then so must its letters especially when they are jumbled together and rearranged Besides offering new sources of legitimacy flexibility and professional advancement Boggling Constitutionalism unlike most other theories of constitutional interpretation is also fun for the whole family This humor piece which was initially published anonymously is a nominee in the Green Bag Almanac Readers list of exemplary legal writing over the past year

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