Introduction to Jurisprudence

Overview

• Introduction to the subject of jurisprudence
• Defining jurisprudence and major theories
• Importance and scope of jurisprudence
• Course is open to law students, philosophy students, and others

Key Questions

• What is jurisprudence?
  • Importance of understanding at the start of the series
• Why is jurisprudence important?
  • Different perspectives from law and philosophy students
• Encouragement for student engagement and initial thoughts on jurisprudence

Importance of Jurisprudence

• Seen differently by law vs. philosophy students
• Encouragement to share perspectives in comments
• Theories and their relevance perceived differently based on academic background

Theories of Jurisprudence

• Importance of theories in jurisprudence
• Two most important theories identified:
  • Natural Law Theory
  • Legal Positivism
• Bridging gaps between law, ethics, philosophy, and politics

Definition of Jurisprudence

• Challenges in defining jurisprudence
• Distinction between case law and philosophy of law
• Focus on philosophy of law in this series

Historical Context

• Jurisprudence developed in the 18th century
• Key figures: John Austin, John Stuart Mill, Jeremy Bentham
• Philosophical origins older, including ancient thinkers like Aristotle

Why Study Jurisprudence?

• Importance for law students to understand deeper concepts beyond practical law
• Bridges descriptive and normative study of law
• Encourages questioning of fundamental legal concepts

Main Theories to be Covered

• Natural Law Theory
  • Ancient influencers and origins
  • Impact of Christianity
  • Modern theoretical approaches
• Legal Positivism
  • Origins and influence of philosophers like Austin
  • HLA Hart's contributions
  • Critiques by Dworkin and Joseph Raz

Additional Topics

• Law and Society
  • Sociological and post-liberal approaches
  • Influence of Durkheim and Weber
  • Marxist interpretations
• Alternative Theories
  • Modern Marxist and Anarchist approaches
  • Feminist and post-modern influences
  • Critical Legal Theory and Critical Race Theory

Scope of the Series

• Structure follows standard jurisprudence or Philosophy of Law textbooks
• Bibliography and references to be provided

Exclusions

• Specific areas like Human Rights and Criminal Law will not be deeply explored
• These areas merit their own dedicated series for detailed study

Conclusion

• Broad overview of what to expect in the series
• Potential future series on specific areas of law after this general course