Sumário:The perspectival compass and its dual function -- The traditional analysis : judges, lawmakers, professors, and attorneys: Internal (normative) perspective : the quest for the right interpretation. External (descriptive) perspective : the quest for the true restatement. Sovereign (evaluative) perspective : the quest for the best design. Subordinate (opportunistic) perspective : the quest for the most favorable construction -- An alternative analysis : legal interaction in a desembedded legal environment: The myth of pure interpretation. Law before, and beyond, the state. The phenomena of switching and substitution.