Morality

Question 1

1) Define laws

Answer 1

• Sir John Salmond described laws as ‘a body of principles recognised and applied by the state in the administration of justice’.
• Compliance with legal rules is compulsory & apply to all members of society.
• Breach of legal rules results in state sanctions and procedures. For ex. breach of criminal law may result in being arrested, charged and prosecuted through the criminal courts. If found guilty a criminal sanction like a fine or imprisonment may be imposed.
• For ex. breach of s.20 OAPA may result in a maximum sentence of 5 years imprisonment.

Question 2

2) Define morals

Answer 2

• Phil Harris defines morality as ‘a set of beliefs, values, principles and standards of behaviour’.
• Moral rules often stem from religion & are taught by elder people in society.
• They only apply to those who choose to follow it & are enforced informally through social and domestic pressure.
• They develop gradually & conduct once considered immoral overtime becomes increasingly acceptable, for ex. homosexuality.

Question 3

3) Convergence

Answer 3

• Legal and moral rules may overlap as both aim to impose certain standards of conduct.
• For ex. laws of murder and theft can be traced back to the 10 commandments.
• Public morality may influence legal decisions, such as in R v R which held that marital rape is not allowed as the public viewed it as immoral.

Question 4

4) Divergence

Answer 4

• There are some differences between legal and moral rules.
• One difference is that legal rules change instantly while moral rules evolve gradually.
• An example of this is legal rules regarding homosexuality were instantly changed when the Sexual Offences Act 1967 was passed, however views on homosexuality are still morally going through change.
• Another difference is that legal rules are formally enforced by state sanctions and procedures while moral rules are informally enforced through social and domestic pressure.
• An example of where legal and moral rules don’t overlap is adultery - even though it is morally wrong it is not legally wrong.

Question 5

5) Natural law theory

Answer 5

• Natural lawyers argue that in order to be a law, a rule must reflect natural law.
• Natural law was considered the divine law of God.
• St. Aquinas expressed that ‘if human law was at variance with the divine law, it wasn’t legal but rather a corruption of the law’.

Question 6

6) Legal positivism

Answer 6

• Jeremy Bentham, a legal positivist, rejected natural law theories & argued that, ‘the existence of law is one thing, its merit or demerit is another. A law which exists is a law, though we happen to dislike it’.
• John Austin defined law in terms of a command from a sovereign, who is obeyed by the majority, enforced by sanction.