A history of attempts to delimit (state) law
| dc.contributor.author | Strauss, D. F. M. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2016-06-03T12:40:53Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2016-06-03T12:40:53Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2012 | |
| dc.description.abstract | English: Reflections on the nature of law and on the limits of the state’s law-making competence did not escape the distorting effect of individualistic and universalistic views of human society. While the Greek-Medieval era was largely in the grip of the latter, the former dominated early modernity up to the Enlightenment. From the urge to be free and autonomous since the Renaissance, the natural science ideal aimed at a rational reconstruction of the universe which, according to social contract theories, proceeded from its simplest elements, the individuals. The subsequent reflection on the nature of law appeared to be in the grip of the inherent tension between the science ideal (nature) and the personality ideal (freedom). This applies to theories of natural law, to Kant and Hegel, as well as to the historical school, legal positivism and the subsequent developments in the 19th century. However, since the romanticism of the late 18th and early 19th century, both universalistic and individualistic theories continued to exert their influence until the 20th century. Cutting through all these developments, other conceptions also played a role, such as the idea of an eternal and immutable lex naturalis and the reaction of historicism and legal positivism which relativized these natural law claims – accompanied by the question of how one should understand constancy and change. A brief systematic alternative is outlined in the concluding remarks of the article. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | Afrikaans: Nadenke oor die aard van die reg en die grense van die regsvormende kompetensie van die staat kon nie ontkom aan die verwringende effek van individualistiese en universalistiese sienings van die menslike samelewing nie. Waar die Grieks-Middeleeuse era grootliks in die greep van laasgenoemde was, het eersgenoemde die vroeë moderniteit tot en met die Verligting gedomineer. Sedert die Renaissance het die drang om outonoom en vry te wees die natuurwetenskapsideaal gerig op ’n rasionele rekonstruksie van die heelal wat in die sosiale verdragsteorieë vanuit die seining van eenvoudigste elemente, die individue, vertrek het. Dit het geblyk dat die voortgaande besinning oor die aard van reg in die greep van die inherente spanning tussen die wetenskapsideaal (natuur) en die persoonlikheidsideaal (vryheid) was. Dit geld ten opsigte van die natuurregsteorieë, rakende die sienings van Kant en Hegel, asook die historiese skool, regspositivisme en die daaropvolgende ontwikkelinge van die 19de eeu. Na die romantisisme van die laat 18de en vroeg 19de eeu het beide individualistiese en universalistiese teorieë hul invloed tot en met die 20ste eeu bly uitoefen. Kruissnydend deur al hierdie ontwikkelinge was daar ook ander ontwikkelinge wat ’n rol gespeel het, soos die idee van ’n ewige en onveranderlike lex naturalis en die reaksie daarop van die historisisme en regspositivisme wat hierdie natuurregsaansprake gerelativeer het – vergesel deur die vraag hoe konstansie en verandering verstaan moet word. Aan die einde van die artikel word ‘n alternatiewe benadering vlugtig in die slotopmerkinge toegelig. | af |
| dc.description.version | Publisher's version | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.citation | Strauss, D. F. (2013). A history of attempts to delimit (state) law. Journal for Juridical Science, 37(2), 35-64. | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.issn | 0258-252X (print) | |
| dc.identifier.issn | 2415-0517 (online) | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11660/2674 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | Faculty of Law, University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | Faculty of Law, University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Lex naturalis | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Historicism | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Legal positivism | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Natural law | en_ZA |
| dc.title | A history of attempts to delimit (state) law | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Article | en_ZA |