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po-special-issue-2023-tvrdikova-
Human Rights in the Context of
Cultural Evolution
Mgr. Bc. Linda Tvrdíková,
Legal Theory Department, Faculty of Law, Masaryk University
Právny obzor, 106, 2023,
special issue, pp. 3-20.
Published online: 20.2.2024
https://doi.org/10.31577/pravnyobzor.specialissue.2023.01
Abstract. The main aim
of this paper is to present a naturalistic theory of human rights which
emphasises that while human rights can be seen as basic moral requirements, they
are nonetheless society-dependent, meaning that they are intrinsically connected
to individual societies and their evolution. The first part of this paper deals
with the starting point of this approach, offering a definition of this form of
naturalization. However, I would like to stress here that I am not suggesting
that the entire issue can be reduced to the level of physical or chemical
properties and laws. As Peregrin has noted, the human capacity for language
means that we are also discursive beings who can build and live in fantastic
worlds of our own making, and therefore we are not restricted to living in the
natural world as such, in the realm of nature where natural laws, such as the
rules of physics or chemistry, are dominant. The world in which we live and
which we ourselves build is also normative, existing within the realm of freedom;
other rules apply here, and our freedom lies in the fact that we can choose to
either obey or disobey them. It is this capacity that differentiates us from
other organisms and indicates that Darwinian evolution is not the only
evolutionary process that has played a crucial role in our evolution, with some
philosophers and scientists terming this cognitively driven process of
development as cultural evolution. As a result, the following section will be
devoted to the relevance of the concept of cultural evolution for academics who
work in the field of social science, law and jurisprudence given the fact that
this theory examines rules and their role and function in society. In this
section we will focus on the evolution of morality because, as we will see,
human rights can be seen as basic moral requirements which are essential for
global cooperation.
Keywords: naturalism,
morality, cultural evolution, human rights, cooperation
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ISSN 2729-9228
(online)
ISSN 0032-6984
(print)
THEORETICAL REVIEW FOR ISSUES OF STATE AND LAW.
Právny obzor is peer-reviewed journal and is indexed in SCOPUS and HeinOnline database (INDEX TO FOREIGN LEGAL PERIODICALS).
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OPEN ACCESS