This post is not intended as a commentary on gay marriage per se. The impetus for this post was a youtube link sent to me by a friend. Here’s the link in question – a televised interview of Alan Keyes on the topic of marriage, see here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9BA7i3sgCU.
In the interview Keyes is asked to reconcile his view that marriage is procreative by definition (therefore making gay marriage an absurdity) with heterosexual married couples that are unable to procreate by reason of infertility or elderliness. He was asked if this meant the law should not permit those who are infertile or elderly to marry. He replied “no” because marriage in those cases do not change the “core” or essential meaning of marriage. I believe he’s referring to the distinction made by H.L.A.Hart between “core” and “penumbral” meaning. (This is reinforced by his comment, “in (the) law we work within definitions.”) In terms of the law the “core” meaning is what the statute intended to cover. For example a statute that bans vehicles from a park was obviously intended to ban cars. A “ penumbra” case would be one not considered by the creators of the law, such as an overhead aeroplane or helicopter etc. We could easily extend the definition of a “vehicle” to a horse or bicycle without altering the “core” meaning of vehicle as it was intended. However, in the case of flying aeroplanes or helicopters invading airspace the definition has been stretched. Thus, on the issue of infertile couples Keyes offers the analogy of the worm and the apple: because an apple has a worm, does not make the worm part of apple. The “core” meaning of apple is not changed. He suggests gay marriage falls so far on the periphery of penumbral meaning that we cannot recognise it without breaking from the “core” meaning of marriage.
Please note this post expresses no opinion on the issue of gay marriage either way. If you must express an opinion please ensure it’s relevant to the argument discussed above.
