Law, Deviation and Paradigmatic Change: Copyright and its Metaphors

Drawing on debates in Sweden about Internet freedom, particularly those connected to copyright and file sharing, and on the European legislative trend of amending copyright, this chapter analyses metaphors and conceptions in terms of a societal paradigmatic shift and the collision of mentalities. Kuhnian paradigms are wedded with the mentalities of the French Annales School of historic research. The chapter argues that the “building blocks” of these mentalities and paradigms can be studied in metaphors, in public debates or in legislation, which may reveal the conceptions they emanate from. This chapter touches upon ethical, moral and legal issues related to the digitalization of society. The relevancy of this chapter in relation to the theme of the book is found in the conceptualization of “deviancy”. One has to ask from what perspective or paradigm the judgment of the behavior takes place, and in what historical context it is made.