Philosophical School Of Jurisprudence

Question 1

Idea

Answer 1

Core Idea:
This school focuses on ethical, moral, and philosophical underpinnings of law.
Law is not just a social fact or state command — it is a moral science, deeply connected to justice, reason, and purpose.
It seeks to answer: What ought law to be?

Question 2

Hugo Grotius (1583–1645)Known

Answer 2

Hugo Grotius (1583–1645)Known as: Father of Modern Natural Law
Main Theory: Natural Law grounded in Human Reason, not Theology
🔍 Key Contributions:
Shifted natural law from religion to reason — Grotius argued that even if God didn’t exist, natural law would still be valid because it’s rooted in rational human nature.
Laid the foundations of international law — introduced the idea of universal moral principles that govern nations and individuals alike.
Distinguished between:
Natural Law: Universal, rational, and immutable.
Positive Law: Man-made law, changeable and localized.
🧠 Mnemonic:
“Grotius = Grounded in Reason” → Law comes from human rationality, not divine command.
🪄 Memory Hook:
Visualize Grotius holding a scale in one hand and a globe in the other — writing law for all mankind, guided by reason, not religion.

Question 3

Immanuel Kant

Answer 3

Known as: Philosopher of Moral Autonomy & Reason
Main Theory: Categorical Imperative + Moral Freedom
🔍 Key Contributions:
Law must respect human dignity and autonomy — no person should be used merely as a means to an end.
Introduced the idea of Categorical Imperative: Act only according to maxims you would will to be universal laws.
Argued that freedom + reason → moral law → this moral law gives rise to legal obligation.
Believed in a universal moral order, not derived from utility or outcome, but from rational self-legislation.
🧠 Mnemonic:
“Kant = Command of Conscience” → Law must align with rational, universal moral duty.
🪄 Memory Hook:
Imagine Kant wearing a robe with the words “Act only on maxims you want universal”, walking through a courtroom where people debate based on what’s right, not what works.

Question 4

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831)

Answer 4

Known as: Philosopher of Dialectics and the Ethical State
Main Theory: Law as Realization of Freedom through the State
🔍 Key Contributions:
Believed that law evolves dialectically — through conflict and resolution of ideas:
Thesis → Antithesis → Synthesis → Progress.
Argued that individual freedom can only be actualized through the state — the state is not a limitation of freedom but its highest form.
Distinguished three spheres of law:
Abstract Right (property, contract — freedom in basic form)
Morality (intention & conscience)
Ethical Life (Sittlichkeit — family, civil society, and state)
The state is the embodiment of the moral will, thus law becomes the rational realization of freedom.
🧠 Mnemonic:
“Hegel = Harmony through the State” → Freedom achieved via ethical order, not outside it.
🪄 Memory Hook:
Picture Hegel drawing three concentric circles: inner = self, middle = society, outer = state — then saying, “Only together do they form true law.”