THE I NTELLECTUAL I NFLUENCE OF

NATURAL LAW
Natural Law - supplementary
Intellectual Influence of Natural Law
The Stoics ancient Greek and Roman
philosophical movement, placing emphasis on
living in accord with nature; we are able to learn
the lessons of nature, the Stoics believed, by the
power of reason
the active man should be able to take things
easily, while the man who is inclined to repose
should be capable of action. Ask nature; she will
tell you that she made both day and night.
(Seneca, Letters from a Stoic, Letter 3)
The Stoics
The person in tune with nature avoids becoming sentimentally attached to
the ways and world of men, in particular the sophisticated social world
with its emphasis on status, wealth and all the habits and customs which
serve only to mask mans direct connection with nature
Self-sufficiency, avoidance of over-emotional attachment to things or
people
You ask what is the proper limit to a persons wealth? First, having what is
essential, and second, having what is enough. (Seneca, Letters from a
Stoic, Letter 2)
Key assumption mankind has a core essence which will be the same for
all peoples and at all times, though this may be reflected more or less
closely in different cultures at different times
This was certainly also the opinion of Aristotle;
Of political justice, part is natural, part legal natural, that which
everywhere has the same force and does not exist by peoples thinking
this or that. (Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, Bk 5, section 7)
The Stoics
In contrast to Aristotle, whose philosophy sought
out the differences between things in order to
isolate their essence, the Stoics emphasised a
unity of essence throughout the cosmos an
interconnectedness human nature was one part
of the cosmic order
Their cosmology placed rational order at the
heart of things; human reason was thus a spark
of the creative fire, Logos, which ordered and
unified the cosmos
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106Bc 43BC) philosopher, lawyer, consul in Rome, laid
foundations of justice in Roman law
True law is right reason in agreement with nature: it is of universal application,
unchanging and everlasting; it summons to duty by its commands and averts from
wrongdoing by its prohibitionsWe cannot be freed from its obligations by senate
or people, and we need not look outside ourselves for an expounder or interpreter
of it. (Cicero, De Re Publica, III, xxii)
Note the common theme in Natural Law which is inherently radical;
Aristotle: *Natural justice+ everywhere has the same force and does not exist by
peoples thinking this or that. (Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics)
Aquinas: A tyrannical law, since it is not in accord with reason, is not
unconditionally a law, but is, rather, a perversion of law (Aquinas, Summa
Theologiae, IaIIae, 92.1)
Positive law, the institutions, interests and governments which are underpinned by
it, is vulnerable to dissent and potential overthrow by those among the population
who are convinced that there is a higher, natural justice
Strands of this tradition were upheld and elaborated by, among others, Grotius
and John Locke
The Universal Declaration
of Human Rights
PREAMBLE

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human
family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the
conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and
belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny
and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human
rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have
determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the
promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full
realization of this pledge,


The Universal Declaration
of Human Rights

Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN
RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every
individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by
teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive
measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and
observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of
territories under their jurisdiction.

Article 1.
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and
conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction
of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social
origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the
political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs,
whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.




Culture and Natural Law Frankenstein
(Romanticism after the Enlightenment)
Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, Mary Shelley

It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils.
With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life
around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my
feet. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes,
and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished
light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive
motion agitated its limbs.
How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch
whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form? His limbs were in
proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! Great God! His
yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath; his hair was of
a lustrous black, and flowing; his teeth of a pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances
only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the
same colour as the dun-white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled
complexion and straight black lips.
I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an
inanimate body. For this I had deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with
an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of
the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.

Culture and Natural Law - Metropolis
Dystopic film of 1927, Fritz
Lang , depicting a technical
society divorced from nature
The Importance of Purpose (telos) in
Aquinas thought
Distinction between primary and secondary precepts
secondary precepts derived from primary, positive laws
derived from natural laws
E.g. The primary, natural precept, Self preservation and
the preservation of the innocent gives us, among other
secondary precepts, Do not abort the unborn.
The primary precepts are those which can be read directly
from nature, the secondary are inferred from these. It is
more certain to infer positives (self-preservation) from the
organization of nature than negatives (no abortion)
Natures Purpose, End, Telos, is always implied and takes
precedence
Aristotles Metaphysics
For Aristotle, God is a detached being who, though (he) set the universe in motion, remains
forever apart from it, never interacting with it; on the contrary, the universe and all being is
striving to reach (him); he is the final end, or purpose, of all creation; that for which
everything is done.
form (or essence) must exist, otherwise beings coming into existence might assume only
random organization, yet things fall into patterns, types
Form exists only potentially until it comes into contact with the right conditions in matter
(the fire takes place only when the match and the sandpaper come into contact the fire
becomes actual)
Any existing thing is composed of matter (its own substance) and form (its own shape,
height, etc), but neither of these two things can exist without the other (Hylomorphism; the
doctrine that matter and form are interdependent). To act requires potential (a kind of
power Aquinas will distinguish between two types of power - active and passive
active power is exercised without interaction; it is free of potential)
Causal chain in theory could be traced back indefinitely for all existing states of affairs
But there must be a first cause - Primum Mobile first mover (to move is understood as to
act)



Aristotles Metaphysics God as Cause
Yet if God is the first mover, this must mean that in (him) there is no
potential for action, only full actuality otherwise there would have had
to have been something outside, before him to actualise the potential
So in what sense is he the cause of anything at all?
*The Good+ seems different in different actions and different arts *skills+;
it is different in medicine, in strategy and the other arts likewise. What
then is the good of each? Surely that for which the sake of everything else
is done. In medicine, this is health, in strategy victory, in architecture a
house (Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, 1.7)
It is in this sense, as an End (that for the sake of which everything else is
done) which is the nature of Gods causation
God is in effect like the plan for a building; the bricks are moved, cement
mixed, wages paid and all, for the sake of the plan. Each thing in nature,
strives to perfect its own essence the closer to take part in the plan; he is
that special form of cause which Aristotle designates the final cause