Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Philosophical Foundation of Human Rights

  • Textbook
  • © 2023
  • Latest edition

Overview

Authors:
  1. Paul Tiedemann

    1. Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany

    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

  • Provides an introduction to the nature and ethical foundations of human rights
  • Offers an accessible overview that does not require a prior philosophical background
  • Includes brief information on historical references

Part of the book series: Springer Textbooks in Law (SPTELA)

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this book

Log in via an institution
eBook USD 16.99 USD 89.00
Discount applied Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

Licence this eBook for your library

Institutional subscriptions

About this book

This textbook presents a range of classical philosophical approaches in order to show that they are unsuitable as a foundation for human rights. Only the conception of human dignity –based on the Kantian distinction between price and dignity – can provide a sufficient basis. The derivation of human rights from the principle of human dignity allows us to identify the most crucial characteristic of human rights, namely the protection of personhood. This in turn makes it possible (1) to distinguish between real moral human rights and spurious ones, (2) to assess the scope of protection for many codified human rights according to the criteria of “core” and “yard,” and (3) offers a point of departure for creating new, unwritten human rights. This philosophical basis supports a substantial reassessment of the case law on human rights, which will ultimately allow us to improve it with regard to legal certainty, clarity and cogency.


In the second edition, errors have been corrected in numerous places, the text has been made clearer and easier to understand. In addition, more recent human rights issues have been newly included, especially those related to the Corona epidemic and climate change. 


The textbook is primarily intended for advanced law students who are interested in a deeper understanding of human rights. It is also suitable for humanities students, and for anyone in the political or social arena whose work involves human rights and their enforcement.


Each chapter is divided into four parts: Abstracts, Lecture, Recommended Reading, and Questions to check reader comprehension. Sample answers are included at the end of the book. 





Keywords

Table of contents (21 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages I-XVII
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 1-21

  3. Utilitarian and Aristotelian Approach

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 23-42

  4. The Social Contract Approach

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 43-63

  5. The Human Dignity Approach

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 65-78

  6. The Human Dignity Principle I

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 79-99

  7. The Human Dignity Principle II

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 101-122

  8. From Human Dignity to Human Rights

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 123-140

  9. Human Rights Concerning the Protection of Physical and Mental Integrity

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 141-158

  10. Freedom of Movement and the Rights Under Detention

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 159-173

  11. Human Rights Concerning the Protection of Intellectual Integrity

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 175-199

  12. The Human Right to Privacy

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 201-220

  13. The Right to Freedom of Conscience

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 221-236

  14. The Right to Spiritual Freedom

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 237-258

  15. The Right to Life

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 259-274

  16. Social Human Rights

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 275-303

  17. Right to Asylum

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 305-322

  18. Fake Human Rights

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 323-340

  19. The Principle of Liberty

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 341-359

  20. The Principle of Equality

    • Paul Tiedemann
    Pages 361-373
Back to top

Authors and Affiliations

  • Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany

    Paul Tiedemann

About the author

Paul Tiedemann, born in 1950, holds a doctorate in law and philosophy and was a judge in the administrative jurisdiction of Hesse until his retirement in 2015. From 1988 to 2004, he also taught administrative and constitutional law at the University of Applied Sciences for Public Management and Security in Wiesbaden administrative and constitutional law and from 2004 to 2007 philosophy of law at Saarland University. In 2007, he founded the first German Refugee Law Clinic at the Justus Liebig University of Giessen and was appointed honorary professor there in 2012. In addition, he was an adjunct professor at Özyeğin University in Istanbul from 2012 to 2018 and a member of the board of the Research Institute for German Law there.

Bibliographic Information

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Back to top

Search

Navigation