Begins with Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights..."
Discusses Americans' dedication to this proposition as key to their power and prosperity.
Notes a decline in belief in these natural rights over time, now seen as ideals or myths.
Influence of German Thought
American Social Sciences: Adopt German attitude toward natural rights—historical sense.
Germany’s Influence: Despite military defeat, Germany influenced American thought, moving away from natural right.
Definition and Importance of Natural Right
Natural Right: Discernible by human reason, universally acknowledged. Presupposes a teleological universe.
All natural beings have an end/destiny determining good operations for them.
Man, endowed with reason, can know his end and govern conduct by natural law.
Key Concept: Enables distinction between right and wrong.
Historical School of Thought
18th Century Germany: Emergence of historical school, opposing universal natural rights.
Ethnic Character of Rights: Rights are tied to unique folk minds rather than universal principles.
Radicalization: Valued local/temporal over universal, preserving natural right in historical guise.
Rousseau's Influence: Historical school developed in reaction to the French Revolution's universal principles.
Rejection of Abstract Principles: Seen as destabilizing, causing alienation from social orders.
Historicism's Approach
Men at Home in the World: Historicism aimed to make men feel at home by focusing on historical context.
Historical Studies: Became key to knowledge. History seen as providing empirical truths about humanity.
Contradiction in Historicism: Claims to empirical truths while denying universal principles.
Nations as natural, bounded by culture/history.
Yet acknowledges general laws of historical evolution.
Flaws of Historicism
Relativization of Truth: Historicism makes all truth relative, denying universal accessibility.
Denial of Natural Right: Without accessible truth, natural right dissolves.
Nihilism: Culminates in radical nihilism—absolute meaninglessness.
Irony: Effort to make men feel at home makes them feel homeless.
Persistent Influence: Despite failures, historicism remains influential, seen as revealing truth of man's condition.
Conclusion
Paradox: Historicism's failure interpreted as authentic human situation.
Modern Influence: Continues to hold sway in Western social sciences despite its nihilistic consequences.