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9 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What do all natural law theorists suppose? |
They suppose that certain facts about humans and their world provide the right basis for laws with which to guide human conduct |
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What do natural law theorists differ significantly in? |
They differ in which facts about the world must be taken as guides to law (e.g., human biology, psychology, sociology, theology, etc.) |
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What do natural law theorists consider "real" laws? |
"Real" laws are laws that reach certain - usually moral - standards |
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Where are the standards that justify "real" laws found? |
The standards are found by looking at the right facts, and using practical reasoning to determine how those facts ought to guide human conduct |
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Who are the two most prominent natural law theorists? |
1. St. Thomas Aquinas 2. John Finnis |
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How do many natural law theorists answer the question: "What is the purpose of philosophical investigation of law?" |
The philosophy of law ought to determine how best to order social interaction for the common good |
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What are defective/degenerate laws? |
Laws which, unlike real laws, do not impose genuine obligations |
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Do natural law theorists believe that an analytical approach to law is sufficient? |
No, natural law theorists believe in a normative approach to law. An adequate philosophy of law must contain the means to distinguish real laws from degenerate/defective ones |
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How did Neil MacCormick describe the natural law view? |
"... laws, like other social institutions, are fully intelligible only by reference to the ends or values they ought to realise, and thus by reference to the intentions that those who participate in making them or implementing them must at least purport to have. This does not entail any acceptance of substantive moral criteria of legal validity, but it does involve acknowledging the moral quality of the relevant ends and values, namely justice and the public good." |
