Which of the following pairs is incorrect?

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 4:

The correct option is 4: "Rights are the crystallization of customs." - Laski. This statement is considered the incorrect pair because it does not accurately reflect the core political philosophy of Harold J. Laski, especially regarding the source and nature of rights. Laski was a prominent exponent of the pluralist theory of sovereignty and a democratic socialist. He viewed rights not as something static, historical, or based merely on past customs, but as dynamic, social, and essential conditions granted and maintained by the state to enable individuals to achieve their moral best. The phrase "Rights are the crystallization of customs" is a definition commonly attributed to the historical or sociological school of jurisprudence, which often emphasizes evolutionary development and custom as the primary source of law and rights, a perspective Laski generally moved away from in his later, more welfare-oriented writings. For Laski, customs might influence rights, but the fundamental justification for rights lies in their social utility and their necessity for individual self-realization within a dynamic society, not just their customary origin.

The incorrect option is 1:

The statement "Rights are not historic conditions possessed by man in the childhood of the race, but since lost." - Laski, is a **correct** statement of Laski's view, which makes this pair **correct** and therefore an **incorrect answer** to the original question. Laski was critical of the historical view of rights (like the theory of natural rights or the idea of a 'Golden Age' where rights existed naturally). He explicitly argued that rights are products of social conditions and are relative to time and place, not remnants of some lost ancient condition. This statement reflects his rejection of rights as being inherently 'natural' or pre-social entitlements.

The incorrect option is 2:

The statement "The maintenance of right is much more a question of habit and tradition than of the formality of written enactment." - Laski, is also a **correct** statement of Laski's philosophy, particularly his pluralist and democratic leanings, making it an **incorrect answer** to the question. Laski believed that legal statutes alone cannot guarantee rights. For rights to be truly maintained, they must be embedded in the public consciousness, supported by social tradition, and practiced as a habit by the community and the state. He emphasized that if a right is not supported by public opinion and tradition, a mere written law will be insufficient to protect it from arbitrary state action.

The incorrect option is 3:

The statement "Rights, infact, are those conditions of social life without which no man can seek, in general, to be himself at his best." - Laski, is considered Laski’s most famous and defining statement on the nature of rights. This view places Laski firmly in the conceptual school that links rights to the highest moral purpose of individuals. He defined rights functionally, asserting that they are the necessary socio-economic and political environment provided by the state to maximize individual welfare and development. Because this statement is accurately attributed to Laski and encapsulates his core theory, it is a **correct pair** and thus an **incorrect answer** to the question asking for the *incorrect* pair.