Interpretation, Integrity, and the Right Answer: An Analysis of the Core Propositions in Dworkin's Legal Theory

解释、整全与唯一正解：德沃金法理论的核心命题探析

“What is law?” This classic question, which has lingered in the minds of countless past scholars, remains unresolved to this day. As the most influential figure in Western jurisprudence after H.L.A. Hart, Ronald Dworkin revisits this core proposition in Law's Empire. Confronting the challenges of theoretical disputes in the legal realm, he puts forward the theory of constructive interpretation and, on this foundation, develops the system of law as integrity. This paper intends to start with constructive interpretation, analyzing how Dworkin completes the systematic construction of the theory of law as integrity and how he responds to the classic dilemma of “whether a single right answer exists in disputes involving value judgments.”

法律是什么？这一萦绕无数先贤的经典诘问至今难获定论。作为继哈特后最具影响力的西方法理学大家，罗纳德·德沃金（Ronald Dwokin）在《法律帝国》中重提这一核心命题，直面法律领域的理论争议难题，提出建构性解释理论，并以此为基石发展出了整全法体系。本文拟从建构性解释切入，剖析德沃金如何完成整全法理论的体系建构，以及如何回应“价值争议中是否存在唯一正解”这一经典难题。