In jurisprudence, the development of natural law, away from a theological and moral discourse towards a secular and rationalistic discourse, was perfected by ChristianWolff (1679 - 1754), and will serve as an example later. On the basis of inter alia Cartesian influences96 what has been construed as being a non-theological theory of natural law developed. However, it is its conception of jurisprudence that is of direct interest to this presentation, as the direct corollary to Descartes’scientia universalis is the development of an arithmetic-mechanistic world view and a corresponding understanding of science and scientific method,97 which allowed the construction: During the 17th Century, legal theory still contended that natural law had objective and necessary existence, and that this metaphysical system of law was cognizable.99 In principle, law was made up of lex divina, lex naturalis, ius gentium, and ius positivum (the latter being subdivided intoius scriptumandius non scriptum, and ius commune and ius municipale).100 According to legal theory, the duties of men were laid down in the light of reason, the law of the land, and divine revelation, and accordingly cognizable by p a r t v i i , c h a p t e r 1 588 96 Kaulbach, Philosophie der Beschreibung, pp. 147-162; Röd, Geometrischer Geist, pp. 117150; Coing, Privatrecht 1, p. 70; Hartung, Die Naturrechtsdebatte, p. 29; Deutsche und Europäische Juristen, Schröder and Kleinheyer, eds., Pufendorf and Wolff. 97 Kaulbach, Philosophie der Beschreibung, pp. 153-162; Röd, Geometrischer Geist, pp. 117128. 98 Schlosser, Grundzüge, p. 87. 99 See, e.g.,Welzel, Naturrecht, p. 109; Denzer, Naturrecht bei Samuel Pufendorf, pp. 40-49; Peterson, “Rechtsvereinheitlichung durch Naturrecht? Zur Frage des Naturrechts in der schulphilosophischens Rechtstheorie des 18. Jahrhunderts,”Quaderni fiorentini per la storia del pensioero giuridico moderno 21 (1992): pp. 26-30;Wieacker, History, pp. 208-209. 100 Coing, Privatrecht 1, pp. 85-89. “... axiomatisch-deduktiv (more geometrico) ein rationales, bis in Detail entwickeltes System profanerVernunftwahrheiten, die einem vernunftbegabten, von seiner empirisch erfahrbaren Bedürftigkeit (imbecillitas) aus af Gemeinschaft (socialitas) existentiell angewiesenen und seinerVerpflichtung zur Sozialität sich bewußten, willensfreien Einzelwesen leicht einleuchten mußten (Naturrecht als Pflichtenlehre).”98
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