Natural Rights

Scholars often attribute the origin of natural rights to the concept of natural law (separate entry), which holds that human reason can derive standards of morality separate from human-made law - meaning human instinct can distinguish moral right from wrong. From a human rights perspective, the theory of natural rights developed into one that granted the individual universal and unalienable rights (such as those to life, liberty, and property) as part of their state of nature as a human being. Thus, several natural law theories imply that all human beings are equal and deserve beneficial, equal treatment simply by being born human. This concept of human equality sparked revolutionary ideas about democracy and government that challenged how the individual stood before the state (e.g., the social contract). From a deontological perspective - that is, one based on the idea that fundamental moral rules like “Don’t steal” exist and, therefore, so do moral duties - humans are morally obligated to respect certain natural rights, regardless of the benefit or harm gained from respecting or violating them. Like theorists of human rights, a deontological theorist maintains that natural rights are independent of external factors like cultural or personal beliefs. From a theological perspective, divine authority endows individuals with these natural rights, reflecting said authority’s will and nature of being rather than necessarily humanity’s. Although the deontological and theological perspectives uphold that respecting natural rights is a universal moral responsibility, the main difference is that a theological theorist asserts that human duty is a direct product of God’s commands or expectations for humanity - often citing doctrinal sources. Ultimately, the human rights, deontological, and theological perspectives on the theory of natural rights all posit that human beings enter this world with certain undeniable liberties - though the implications and interpretations of those rights differ per view.