(reflect) Class.getDeclaringClass() returns null for anonymous member classes

Name: nt126004 Date: 05/23/2003


A DESCRIPTION OF THE REQUEST :
With reference to bug report 4191731:
Method Class.getDeclaringClass() returns null when called for anonymous member classes.

JUSTIFICATION :
It is quite clear that an anonymous member class must have a "declaring-class" and so it is perverse that Class.getDeclaringClass() does not correctly return the a reference to the Class object for the "declaring-class".

EXPECTED VERSUS ACTUAL BEHAVIOR :
EXPECTED -
Method Class.getDeclaringClass() should return Class object for the declaring-class. For example:

public class MyClass
{
   public OtherClass other = new OtherClass(){};
}

MyClass mc = new MyClass();

we need

mc.other.getClass().getDeclaringClass() == MyClass.class

ACTUAL -
Actual behavour is that

other.getClass().getDeclaringClass() == null



---------- BEGIN SOURCE ----------
package com.parctechnologies.rg.tests;

/**
 * <p>Title: Demonstrate <code>Class.getDeclaringClass()</code> bug</p>
 * <p>Description: Demonstrate <code>Class.getDeclaringClass()</code> bug</p>
 * @author John Worrell
 * @version 1.0
 */

public class DemoBug1
{
    /**
     * An anonymous static member class
     */
    static Object thing1 = new Object()
    {
        public String toString()
        {
            return "THING1";
        }
    };

    /**
     * A static member class
     */
    static class Thing2 extends Object
    {
        public String toString()
        {
            return "THING2";
        }
    }

    /**
     * A static instance of the member class
     */
    static Object thing2 = new Thing2();

    /**
     * An anonymous member class
     */
    Object thing3 = new Object()
    {
        public String toString()
        {
            return "THING3";
        }
    };

    /**
     * A member class
     */
    class Thing4 extends Object
    {
        public String toString()
        {
            return "THING4";
        }
    }

    /**
     * An instance of the member class
     */
    Object thing4 = new Thing4();

    public DemoBug1()
    {
        System.out.println("Declaring Class for Thing1: " + thing1.getClass().getDeclaringClass());
        System.out.println("Declaring Class for Thing2: " + thing2.getClass().getDeclaringClass());
        System.out.println("Declaring Class for Thing3: " + thing3.getClass().getDeclaringClass());
        System.out.println("Declaring Class for Thing4: " + thing4.getClass().getDeclaringClass());
    }

    public static void main(String[] args)
    {
        DemoBug1 demoBug11 = new DemoBug1();
    }
}
/* END */

---------- END SOURCE ----------

CUSTOMER SUBMITTED WORKAROUND :
Parsing and trimming the output from:

mc.other.getClass().getName()

can be used to find the declaring Class object.
(Review ID: 186357)
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