Of The Law Of Nature And Nations

"In 1662 Pufendorf was appointed to the first modern professorship in natural law (at the University of Heidelberg). In 1670 he became professor of natural law at the University of Lund in Sweden. First published in 1672, this is his principle work and a landmark in the history of natural and international law. Beginning with a consideration of fundamental legal ideas and their various divisions, Pufendorf proceeded to a discussion of the validity of customs, the doctrines of necessity and innate human reason. The work is significant in part because it developed principles introduced by Grotius and Hobbes. Unlike Hobbes, Pufendorf argued that peace, not war, was the state of nature, and he proposed that international law was not restricted to Christendom." -- Lawbook Exchange.

In Of the Law of Nature and Nations, Pufendorf provided a comprehensive system of society, law, and government based on a theory of human nature. Eschewing contemporary theological ideas of human perfection and other-worldly beatitude, he founded his natural law on the need for sociability in this world. While paying great respect to Grotius as the founder of a modern, enlightened natural law, Pufendorf criticized his remaining "scholasticism." Similarly, he learned from Hobbes but rejected the reduction of natural law to individual self-interest. Pufendorf wanted to transform natural law by getting rid of its metaphysical foundations, but he retained its function as a moral basis for civil law and the state. Of the Law of Nature and Nations was Pufendorf's magnum opus. Despite its enormous size, the work was translated into nine languages. Together with the shorter textbook version, The Whole Duty of Man--published in thirteen languages--Pufendorf's work influenced generations of students across Europe and America. Samuel Pufendorf (1632-1694) was one of the most important figures in early-modern political thought. An exact contemporary of Locke and Spinoza, he transformed the natural law theories of Grotius and Hobbes, developed striking ideas of toleration and of the relationship between church and state, and wrote extensive political histories and analyses of the constitution of the German empire. Basil Kennett (1674-1715) was an antiquary, translator, and Anglican clergyman who led a team effort in translating Pufendorf's great work. Knud Haakonssen is Professor of Intellectual History at the University of Sussex, England.

The Law of Nations and Natural Law 1625-1800 offers innovative studies on the development of the law of nations after the Peace of Westphalia. This period was decisive for the origin and constitution of the discipline which eventually emancipated itself from natural law and became modern international law. A specialist on the law of nations in the Swiss context and on its major figure, Emer de Vattel, Simone Zurbuchen prompted scholars to explore the law of nations in various European contexts. The volume studies little known literature related to the law of nations as an academic discipline, offers novel interpretations of classics in the field, and deconstructs ‘myths’ associated with the law of nations in the Enlightenment.