The Concept of Law

This article is about the book by H. L. A. Hart. For the topic of "law", see Law. For the philosophyand theory of law, see Jurisprudence.
The Concept of Law
First edition
AuthorH. L. A. Hart
Genrelegal philosophy
Publication date
1961

The Concept of Law is a 1961 book by the legal philosopher H. L. A. Hart and his most famous work.[1] The Concept of Law presents Hart's theory of legal positivism—the view that laws are rules made by humans and that there is no inherent or necessary connection between law and morality—within the framework of analytic philosophy. Hart sought to provide a theory of descriptive sociology and analytical jurisprudence.[2] The book addresses a number of traditional jurisprudential topics such as the nature of law, whether laws are rules, and the relation between law and morality. Hart answers these by placing law into a social context while at the same time leaving the capability for rigorous analysis of legal terms, which in effect "awakened English jurisprudence from its comfortable slumbers".[3]

Hart's book has remained "one of the most influential texts of analytical legal philosophy",[4] as well as "the most successful work of analytical jurisprudence ever to appear in the common law world."[5] According to Nicola Lacey, The Concept of Law "remains, 40 years after its publication, the main point of reference for teaching analytical jurisprudence and, along with Kelsen’s The Pure Theory of Law and General Theory of Law and State, the starting point for jurisprudential research in the analytic tradition."[6]

  1. ^ "H.L.A. Hart's The Concept of Law".
  2. ^ Lacey, Nicola (2006). A Life of H.L.A. Hart. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 225. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199202775.003.0010. ISBN 9780199202775.
  3. ^ Postema, Gerald (2011). Enrico Pattaro (ed.). Legal Philosophy in the Twentieth Century: The Common Law World. A Treatise of Legal Philosophy and General Jurisprudence. Vol. 11. Springer. p. 261.
  4. ^ Marshall, Richard (2012-07-06). "The Endless Search For Truth: Richard Marshall interviews Andrei Marmor". 3:AM Magazine. Archived from the original on 8 June 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  5. ^ Simpson, A. W. Brian (2011). Reflections on 'The Concept of Law'. Oxford University Press. p. 1. ISBN 978-0199693320.
  6. ^ Lacey, Nicola (2006). A Life of H.L.A. Hart. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 224. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199202775.003.0010. ISBN 9780199202775.