Teacher(s)
Language
English
Main themes
The course addresses important contemporary issues such as human rights, global justice, environmental justice and democracy, while placing them in the context of the history of natural law thinking.
Learning outcomes
At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to : | |
With regard to the programme's learning outcomes framework, the teaching unit contributes to the development and acquisition of the following skills:
I. Acquiring general knowledge and interdisciplinary skills
II. Acquiring specific legal knowledge
III. Acquiring scientific methods and tools
IV. Acquiring analytical, reflective and argumentative skills based on concrete situations
V. Mastering written and oral communication in English
Develop transferable skills: develop a sense of autonomy in carrying out a variety of tasks (organisational skills, work planning, meeting deadlines, etc.), refine personal ethics in the pursuit of one's studies and in one's interactions with others (personal positioning consistent with one's own values, sense of the common good, respect for others, etc.).
More specifically, at the end of the course, students will be able to:
- read and critically question a natural law text;
- situate natural law texts within legal thought and analyse their main arguments;
- identify the links between a current legal debate and debates in the natural law tradition;
- write a well-argued position on contemporary issues in natural law. |
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Content
This teaching unit enables students to explore the links between law, ethics and justice, and encourages them to question the contemporary legal framework in light of natural law themes. To do so, the class first traces the history of natural law thoughts, from ancient Greece until modernity. It then briefly presents the main paradigm opposed to the natural law tradition – legal positivism –, how it structured legal thought in the 19th and 20th centuries and the new forms taken by natural law thoughts in the 20th and 21st centuries. With this background, it then proposes to approach contemporary issues, such as human rights, rule of law, democracy, global justice, social justice, environmental justice, civil disobedience, nationhood, migration, rights of non-humans…
The objective of the class is to enable students to think critically about legal issues by situating their arguments in the various schools of thought of natural law.
The objective of the class is to enable students to think critically about legal issues by situating their arguments in the various schools of thought of natural law.
Teaching methods
The class consists in a substantial theoretical and historical presentation of the concepts and legal thoughts by the instructor, punctuated with debates among students. Students will need to read and prepare the readings to actively participate.
Evaluation methods
The assessment consists in a closed-book written exam with open-ended questions.
The assessment criteria focus on the student’s understanding and knowledge of the topics covered in the course, as well as their critical thinking skills regarding contemporary issues in natural law.
Other information
A session for consulting the exam papers in the presence of the holder or the person delegated by him or her for this purpose is organised within one month of the communication of the results. The date will be announced at least one week in advance (Art. 137, Landscape Decree).
Online resources
The texts to be read will be posted on Moodle and included in the syllabus.
Bibliography
Un syllabus est mis à la disposition des étudiant·es dès le début du cours et comprend le plan du cours ainsi que les textes à lire pour le cours.
A syllabus is made available to students at the beginning of the course and includes the course outline and the texts to be read for the course.
Teaching materials
- Natural Law
Faculty or entity
