Leon Petrazycki
Encyclopedia
Leon Petrazycki was a Polish
philosopher, legal scholar and sociologist. He is considered one of the important forerunners of the sociology of law
.
region in the Russian Empire
. He graduated from Kiev University
in 1890, spent two years on a scholarship in Berlin
and got his doctorate in 1896 from the University of St. Petersburg. At the latter university he served from 1897 to 1917 as a professor of the Philosophy of Law.
In 1906 Petrażycki was elected to the ill-fated First Duma as a member of the Constitutional Democratic Party
. When the legislature was dissolved after a few months, he was convicted and incarcerated for his protests. He was appointed to the Supreme Court of Russia in 1917, but had to flee the country when the Bolshevik
revolution succeeded. He found a new home in Poland
and became the first professor of Sociology at Warsaw University in 1919.
A prolific writer in several languages and famous lecturer with a large following of students, Petrażycki committed suicide in 1931.
English speakers still largely rely on a compilation of Petrażycki's writings edited by the Russian-American sociologist Nicholas S. Timasheff
in 1955. Despite some recent efforts to introduce and revive his work, it is still largely unknown in the West.
Petrażycki conceives of law as an empirical, psychological phenomenon that can best be studied by introspection. According to him, law takes the form of legal experiences (emotions, impulsions) implying a two-sided relationship between a right on the one hand and a duty on the other hand. If this legal experience refers to normative facts in a broad sense (statutes, court decisions, but also contracts, customs, commands of any sort) he calls it "positive law"; if it lacks such reference, he talks of "intuitive law".
In another conceptualization, he contrasts "official law" (made by the state and its agents) to "unofficial law" (made by societal agents), which brings him close to legal pluralism
. He parallels Eugen Ehrlich´s
idea of living law when he states that "the true practice of civil law or any law is not to be found in the courts, but altogether elsewhere. Its practitioners are not judges and advocates, but each individual citizen..." (Petrażycki 1897, as quoted by Motyka)
Petrażycki's theory of law is anti-statist and very critical of the legal positivism
of his time, which he takes to task for being naive and lacking a truly scientific basis because of its focus on norms, rather than the experience of those norms. He also rejects the rather common notion that only human beings can have rights and can therefore be seen as an early proponent of animal rights
.
Petrażycki has been called the "unrecognized father of the sociology of law" (Adam Podgorecki
1980/81). His influence on the sociology of law has been primarily indirect through some of his students, specifically Nicholas S. Timasheff
, Georges Gurvitch
, and Pitirim Sorokin
, who each in various ways contributed to formulate a more distinctly sociological perspective, derived from and complementary to Petrażycki's psychological theory.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
philosopher, legal scholar and sociologist. He is considered one of the important forerunners of the sociology of law
Sociology of law
The sociology of law is often described as a sub-discipline of sociology or an interdisciplinary approach within legal studies...
.
Life
Leon Petrażycki was born into the Polish gentry of the VitebskVitebsk
Vitebsk, also known as Viciebsk or Vitsyebsk , is a city in Belarus, near the border with Russia. The capital of the Vitebsk Oblast, in 2004 it had 342,381 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth largest city...
region in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. He graduated from Kiev University
Kiev University
Taras Shevchenko University or officially the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv , colloquially known in Ukrainian as KNU is located in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is the third oldest university in Ukraine after the University of Lviv and Kharkiv University. Currently, its structure...
in 1890, spent two years on a scholarship in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and got his doctorate in 1896 from the University of St. Petersburg. At the latter university he served from 1897 to 1917 as a professor of the Philosophy of Law.
In 1906 Petrażycki was elected to the ill-fated First Duma as a member of the Constitutional Democratic Party
Constitutional Democratic party
The Constitutional Democratic Party was a liberal political party in the Russian Empire. Party members were called Kadets, from the abbreviation K-D of the party name...
. When the legislature was dissolved after a few months, he was convicted and incarcerated for his protests. He was appointed to the Supreme Court of Russia in 1917, but had to flee the country when the Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
revolution succeeded. He found a new home in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and became the first professor of Sociology at Warsaw University in 1919.
A prolific writer in several languages and famous lecturer with a large following of students, Petrażycki committed suicide in 1931.
Work
Petrażycki published many books in Russian, German, and Polish early in life. Unfortunately, many of his late ideas were preserved only in lecture notes taken by his students. Even in Poland, his work is only partly known.English speakers still largely rely on a compilation of Petrażycki's writings edited by the Russian-American sociologist Nicholas S. Timasheff
Nicholas Timasheff
Nicholas Sergeyevitch Timasheff was a Russian sociologist, professor of jurisprudence and writer.Timasheff "came from an old family of Russian nobility"; his father was Minister of Trade and Industry under Nicholas II. In St...
in 1955. Despite some recent efforts to introduce and revive his work, it is still largely unknown in the West.
Petrażycki conceives of law as an empirical, psychological phenomenon that can best be studied by introspection. According to him, law takes the form of legal experiences (emotions, impulsions) implying a two-sided relationship between a right on the one hand and a duty on the other hand. If this legal experience refers to normative facts in a broad sense (statutes, court decisions, but also contracts, customs, commands of any sort) he calls it "positive law"; if it lacks such reference, he talks of "intuitive law".
In another conceptualization, he contrasts "official law" (made by the state and its agents) to "unofficial law" (made by societal agents), which brings him close to legal pluralism
Legal pluralism
Legal pluralism is the existence of multiple legal systems within one geographic area. Plural legal systems are particularly prevalent in former colonies, where the law of a former colonial authority may exist alongside more traditional legal systems...
. He parallels Eugen Ehrlich´s
Eugen Ehrlich
Eugen Ehrlich was an Austrian legal scholar and sociologist of law....
idea of living law when he states that "the true practice of civil law or any law is not to be found in the courts, but altogether elsewhere. Its practitioners are not judges and advocates, but each individual citizen..." (Petrażycki 1897, as quoted by Motyka)
Petrażycki's theory of law is anti-statist and very critical of the legal positivism
Legal positivism
Legal positivism is a school of thought of philosophy of law and jurisprudence, largely developed by nineteenth-century legal thinkers such as Jeremy Bentham and John Austin. However, the most prominent figure in the history of legal positivism is H.L.A...
of his time, which he takes to task for being naive and lacking a truly scientific basis because of its focus on norms, rather than the experience of those norms. He also rejects the rather common notion that only human beings can have rights and can therefore be seen as an early proponent of animal rights
Animal rights
Animal rights, also known as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of non-human animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of human beings...
.
Petrażycki has been called the "unrecognized father of the sociology of law" (Adam Podgorecki
Adam Podgórecki
Adam Podgórecki is an internationally renowned legal sociologist and one of the founders of the Research Committee on Sociology of Law . Podgórecki was also one of the founders of the first institute at Warsaw University which was devoted to the social scientific studies of law...
1980/81). His influence on the sociology of law has been primarily indirect through some of his students, specifically Nicholas S. Timasheff
Nicholas Timasheff
Nicholas Sergeyevitch Timasheff was a Russian sociologist, professor of jurisprudence and writer.Timasheff "came from an old family of Russian nobility"; his father was Minister of Trade and Industry under Nicholas II. In St...
, Georges Gurvitch
Georges Gurvitch
Georges Gurvitch was a Russian born French sociologist and jurist. One of the leading sociologists of his times, he was a specialist of the sociology of knowledge. In 1944 he founded the journal Cahiers internationaux de Sociologie. He held a chair in sociology at the Sorbonne in Paris.Gurvitch is...
, and Pitirim Sorokin
Pitirim Sorokin
Pitirim Alexandrovich Sorokin was a Russian-American sociologist born in Komi . Academic and political activist in Russia, he emigrated from Russia to the United States in 1923. He founded the Department of Sociology at Harvard University. He was a vocal opponent of Talcott Parsons' theories...
, who each in various ways contributed to formulate a more distinctly sociological perspective, derived from and complementary to Petrażycki's psychological theory.
See also
- History of philosophy in Poland
- List of Poles
- International Institute for the Sociology of LawInternational Institute for the Sociology of LawThe International Institute for the Sociology of Law in Oñati is the only international establishment which is entirely devoted to teaching and promoting the sociology of law, socio-legal studies, and law and society research....