Mieczysław A. Krąpiec’s Metaphysics of Law

Abstract

The subject of interest of the philosophy (metaphysics) of law developed by Mieczysław A. Krąpiec is the existence of natural law, the ways in which the content of this law is formulated, the basis of established law and justice, the relationship between established law and natural law, and the conditions of law’s implementation in various communities. Krąpiec proposed, firstly, a realistic interpretation of law as a real and interpersonal relation; secondly, a concept of the analogical natural law; and thirdly, the interpretation of human rights as ways of realizing the personal nature of the human being—as the ways which are found in the social context and proclaimed particularly in the form of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). Concerning the philosophy of politics, Krąpiec considered the issue of the sovereignty of the human person in relation to sovereignty of society, nation, and the State, as well as the issue of politics understood as the realization of the common good in a prudent manner. Krąpiec also referred to the Polish tradition of defending the rights of nations, thus building the foundations of the philosophy of nation.

Keywords

• mieczysław a. krąpiec
• philosophy of law
• metaphysics of law
• natural law
• human rights
• common good
• sovereingty
• justice
• relations