Natural Law Theory

In Section 1 I Outline The History Of Natural Law Theory Covering Plato Aristotle The Stoics And Aquinas. In Section 2 I Explore Two Alternative Traditions Of Natural Law And Explain Why These Constitute Rivals To The Aristotelian Tradition. In Section 3 I Go On To Elaborate A Via Negativa Along Which Natural Law Norms Can Be Discovered. On This Basis I Unpack What I Call Three ''Experiments In Being'' Each Of Which Illustrates The Cogency Of This Method. In Section 4 I Investigate And Rebut Two Seminal Challenges To Natural Law Methodology Namely The Fact/Value Distinction In Metaethics And Darwinian Evolutionary Biology. In Section 5 I Then Outline And Criticise The ''New'' Natural Law Theory Which Is An Attempt To Revise Natural Law Thought In Light Of The Two Challenges Above. I Conclude In Section 6 With A Summary And Some Reflections On The Prospects For Natural Law Theory.