| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立中山大學 === 政治學研究所 === 103 === Natural rights theory not only influences the modern conception of rights, but also has its impact on the development of human rights theories. The idea of natural rights suggests that we have rights just because we’re human, and it also shows that the existence of these rights does not rely on any form of society or political institutions. However, British Idealism provides us with a very different interpretation of rights. They believe that the idea of natural rights ignores the fact that people are indeed bonded with the social relations, and rights thus are the actualization of social relations. “Rights recognition thesis” of Thomas Hill Green is the perfect representation of the British Idealism’s concept of rights. Green believed that only through social recognition can rights be made. Rights are not only individual powers, but also the way to achieve one’s moral end. Rights can only be “natural” due to its importance to human beings. However, this shift from natural rights to rights recognition is not just changes in concept; it also represents two different kinds of moral attitude. Green’s politics can be seen as “Perfectionist Liberalism”, which is different from Hobbes’ separation on moral philosophy and political theories. Green’s political thoughts are not only incoherent with his moral attitude; his “new liberalism” is politics with moral concerns. Green’s rights recognition thesis brings in the moral aspect of rights, combines it with the value of common good. It can be seen as a “solution” or “the third way” in the contemporary liberal-communitarian debate, providing us with an alternative in the confrontation of the value of rights and common good; Green’s new liberalism proves that these two values can be compatible with each other. Thus, the examination on Green’s thoughts should be able to provide us with a train of thoughts different from liberal tradition.
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