The Shrinking Back: The Law of Biography

Abstract

The Article argues that quotations of copyrighted material used as "fact" should be protected. The Article explores the relation between the legal law of biography and the literary theory of biography, focusing specifically on the use of unpublished materials in written biographies. The Article surveys the assumptions underlying copyright, fair use, and privacy doctrines. The Article critiques fair use solutions suggested by legal commentary and congressional action and sketches a different analysis, not involving fair use. The "fact use" proposal would shift the burden from proving "fair use" to proving that the quotations were not used as "facts."