Observation

In Con Law we're talking about the abortion cases -- Roe, Casey, Carhart, etc. -- and the nature of discussion is totally different from any kind of discussion that would have happened in college. In undergrad, people would voice emphatic opinions and defend them vigorously. The class would probably run long, and the professor would moderate.

In law school, the discussion is very different. The students are very, very reluctant to state opinions, and when they (we) do, it's like tiptoeing. Of course, this makes sense in an environment like law school, where people are excessively aware of peer approval.

But it's also counter-intuitive in at least one sense. When we're talking about less emotional issues, the debate is more heated than it is now, when the subject is extremely controversial. Yet the abortion discussion is like pulling teeth to get students to contribute.

Another observation: People tend to mimic the speech that they're exposed to. Since we're reading and discussing abortion cases, words like "conception" and "termination" are being used as they relate directly to the actual abortion procedure, but people are also unconsciously using them to mean other things ("My conception of this idea involves...").