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Liberalism and Political Society

Liberalism and Political Society CORNELIUS F. MURPHY O F THE VARIOUS TENSIONS EXPERIENCED by a modern legal system, the most important concern the relationship between the individual and society. Any attempt to deal adequately with these problems must take into account the principal tenets of liberalism. Expressing in divergent ways the supremacy of the individual, liberal theory has substantially influenced modern jurisprudence. This influence is un- derstandable because the nature of personal freedom has become a central question of modern life. There is an historical relationship between a liberal view of society and the establishment of the modern legal order. Post-feudal Europe experienced the rise of the absolute monarch. This experience of su- preme power led to the differentiation of state and society, and marked the beginning of the modern nation state. The transition was paralleled by changes in social structure and organization. Profes- sional and merchant classes challenged both aristocratic privilege and the claims of unlimited sovereignty. Out of these changes in the composition of society, and the struggles they engendered, were born the essential elements of what we now understand as a legal system.1 The conviction that no particular group, or person, has either an inherent right to govern, or a http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png American Journal of Jurisprudence Oxford University Press

Liberalism and Political Society

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Publisher
Oxford University Press
Copyright
© 1981 by The University of Notre Dame
ISSN
0065-8995
eISSN
2049-6494
DOI
10.1093/ajj/26.1.125
Publisher site
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Abstract

CORNELIUS F. MURPHY O F THE VARIOUS TENSIONS EXPERIENCED by a modern legal system, the most important concern the relationship between the individual and society. Any attempt to deal adequately with these problems must take into account the principal tenets of liberalism. Expressing in divergent ways the supremacy of the individual, liberal theory has substantially influenced modern jurisprudence. This influence is un- derstandable because the nature of personal freedom has become a central question of modern life. There is an historical relationship between a liberal view of society and the establishment of the modern legal order. Post-feudal Europe experienced the rise of the absolute monarch. This experience of su- preme power led to the differentiation of state and society, and marked the beginning of the modern nation state. The transition was paralleled by changes in social structure and organization. Profes- sional and merchant classes challenged both aristocratic privilege and the claims of unlimited sovereignty. Out of these changes in the composition of society, and the struggles they engendered, were born the essential elements of what we now understand as a legal system.1 The conviction that no particular group, or person, has either an inherent right to govern, or a

Journal

American Journal of Jurisprudence – Oxford University Press

Published: Jan 1, 1981

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