The realm of copyright is experiencing a serious crisis. This has partly resulted from opposition between proponents of conservative and libertarianist schools of thought. In the face of such polarisation and radical opposition, definitions of copyright do not give space for philosophical and hermeneutical conceptualisations that may improve understandings of its rationale and philosophical foundations. Thus, both schools make use of "performatic mantras", which intensify conflicting relationships and ideological positions. This article shows that "performatic mantras" cannot be used in a pernicious manner and that the recovery of copyright worth involves a review of schools that examine it.