3 credits A study of the relationship between the law and the culture of the society in which it functions. An analysis is made of the law as a social institution, its possible origin, its development through various periods of history, and its present status in Western civilization. Special emphasis is placed upon the problems of contemporary criminal law in the United States, the effects of recent social changes and conflicts on the criminal courts, the rights and responsibilities of those who come before them, and various proposals for changes in American criminal law.