ABSTRACT
E. D. E. N. Southworth used storytelling to instruct and persuade, to effect change by changing people's minds. It is helpful to look at Southworth's work in relation to the current critical legal theory to understand her pedagogy. Critical legal theory holds that the outcome of legal cases is most often determined not so much by logical argument or precedent as by considerations of power. Consequently, storytelling can be more important than objective reasoning in presenting the case for a person from a marginalized or powerless group. Supporters of storytelling in law describe it as a 'nonargumentative method of persuasion' and maintain that since the beliefs of most people involve 'unarticulated social values and mindsets', one can best change people's minds 'through the use of stories, which can operate at a deep level of mindset construction, just like the societal racist and sexist stories they seek to combat'.
