Lorenzo Peña facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lorenzo Peña
Peña broadcasting in August 2022
Born	August 29, 1944 Alicante, Spain
Other names	Lorenzo Peña y Gonzalo, Llorenç Penya
Academic background
Alma mater	Université de Liège (Belgium)
Thesis	Contradiction et vérité (1979)
Doctoral advisor	Paul Gochet
Influences	Plato, Aquinas, Leibniz, Jeremy Bentham, Hegel, Marx, Frege, Willard Quine, Ferdinand Gonseth, Lotfi Zadeh, Kelsen
Academic work
Era	Contemporary philosophy
Discipline	Western philosophy
School or tradition	Analytic philosophy
Institutions	Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Universidad de León, CSIC
Main interests	Philosophy of law, logic, metaphysics, philosophy of language
Notable works	El ente y su ser, Hallazgos Filosóficos, Estudios Republicanos, Visión lógica del Derecho
Notable ideas	Cumulativism, Contradictorial gradualism, Ontophantics, republicanism, legal rationalism, natural law
Notes
Lorenzo Peña is a member of the Spanish Society of Legal and Political Philosophy and is a lawyer enrolled with the Madrid Bar Association of Advocates

Lorenzo Peña, born on August 29, 1944, is a Spanish thinker. He is known as a philosopher, a lawyer, and an expert in logic and political ideas. He believes in using reason to understand the world and laws, much like the old philosopher Leibniz.

Life Story

Lorenzo Peña was born in Alicante, Spain. His family faced difficulties because of the government at the time. His mother, born in Madrid, was not allowed to return to the city until 1952.

In Madrid, Peña learned Greek and language studies from the famous Spanish expert Francisco Rodríguez Adrados. He also studied ethics, which is about right and wrong, with J.L. Aranguren.

In 1962, he became involved in political activities. This led to him having to leave Spain in 1965. In 1969, he married María Teresa Alonso in Meudon, France. While living in Paris, he learned from the French historian Pierre Vilar. He also saw the big student protests in May 1968. He stopped his secret political work in 1972. After 18 years away, he returned to Spain in 1983.

His Career Path

In 1974, Peña earned his philosophy degree from a university in Quito, Ecuador. His main project was about Anselm of Canterbury's argument for the existence of God. His teacher, Julio C. Terán, helped him with this.

He then spent four years in Liège, Belgium, from 1975 to 1979. There, he wrote his main paper on a special kind of logic called "contradictorial logic." This logic allows for some contradictions to be true. He also earned another degree in American Studies from the University of Liège.

After getting his Ph.D. in 1979, he went back to Ecuador. He taught at the university there for four years. Later, after returning to Spain, he taught at León University for three years. In 1987, he became a senior researcher at the CSIC, which is Spain's main research center.

He spent six months in Canberra, Australia, as a visiting scholar. He worked with Richard Sylvan and Philip Pettit at the Australian National University. Later, he started focusing his research on the philosophy of law. He became a lawyer, earning a master's degree in law in 2007 and a Ph.D. in law in 2015 from the Autonomous University of Madrid. In 2008, he joined the Madrid Bar Association, which is a group for lawyers. He reached the highest academic level, Research Professor, in 2006.

In August 2014, he retired from his full-time job. However, he was given the title of honorary professor at the CSIC. This allowed him to lead a new research project about legal and ethical responsibility from 2014 to 2017.

Peña also started an online journal called SORITES (1995-2008). He founded and led JuriLog, a research group at the CSIC that studies logic and law.

His Philosophical Ideas

Lorenzo Peña has developed several important philosophical ideas throughout his career.

Ontophantics: Understanding Reality

Ontophantics is a system of ideas Peña developed between 1974 and 1995. It mainly focuses on metaphysics, which is the study of what is real.

• Language and Reality: This idea starts by looking at how language works. Peña believes that what language shows us is also what is real. He sees sentences and facts as changing processes, not just static things.
• Solving Puzzles with Logic: He uses a special kind of logic called paraconsistent logic to solve puzzles, like Zeno's paradox of the arrow. Instead of saying contradictions are just in our thoughts, Peña believes they can exist in reality itself.
• Existence and Truth: Ontophantics rejects the idea that things can exist without being real. It says that every entity is a fact of its own existence. Truth is also seen as a form of existence.
• Holistic Knowledge: Peña believes that our knowledge is like a whole system. He thinks we should test our ideas against all our experiences and change them little by little. He doesn't believe in trusting any single method without question.
• God's Existence: Peña's first book discussed arguments against God's existence. He used his special logic and set theory to explore this. He also believes in determinism, meaning that all events are decided beforehand, and rejects free will.

Contradictorial Gradualism: Degrees of Truth

Peña's approach to logic is part of the "fuzzy" logic family, started by Lotfi A. Zadeh. Unlike some other ideas, Peña's "contradictorial gradualism" says that true contradictions happen when something only partly exists.

• Fuzzy Logic: His idea of "fuzziness" means that things can be true and false at the same time, but to different degrees. It's like saying something can be a little bit true and a little bit false.
• Plato's Influence: This idea is influenced by Plato, suggesting that there are degrees of being and non-being.

Transitive Logic: A Special System

To explain his ideas, Peña created several logic systems called "transitive logic," or TL.

• Two Kinds of "Not": TL uses two types of "not." One is a strong "not at all," which works like in regular logic. The other is a weak "not," which depends on how much something is true.
• Combining Logics: TL combines parts of different logic systems. It's like a mix of ideas, making it a unique way to think about truth and reasoning.

Cumulativism: Things Adding Up

Cumulativism is Peña's philosophical idea that developed from 1996 onwards. It builds on his contradictorial gradualism.

• Continuous Change: This idea says that all changes happen slowly, step by step. Each new step keeps many qualities from the one before it.
• Gathering and Aggregation: Peña believes that reality's main feature is things gathering together. He sees all entities as collections.
• Working Together: Cumulativism avoids thinking of things as completely separate. It supports the idea of working together, both in understanding reality and in political ideas.
• Flexible Concepts: It suggests that concepts should be soft and fluid, with changing boundaries.
• "Cumuli": The gatherings or groups in this idea are called "cumuli." This is different from standard "sets" because not everything in a cumulus has to share the same defining feature.
• Philosophy of Conjunction: Overall, cumulativism is about how things combine. If A and B exist, then A-and-B exists to the extent that A and B exist.

Nomological Logic: The Logic of Law

Peña's work on "deontic logic," which is the logic of duties and permissions, started in 1979. He later created a new system called "Nomological Logic" or NL, also known as "Juristic Logic."

• New Rules for Law: NL changes many standard rules of deontic logic. For example, it doesn't always say that if you have a duty to do A, and A leads to B, then you have a duty to do B.
• Permission and Obligation: It introduces new rules about what is allowed and what is required. For instance, if something is allowed, and it causes something else, then that effect is also allowed.
• Degrees of Law: NL also considers that permissions and obligations can exist in different degrees.
• Learning from Practice: Peña believes that the best way to find valid rules for logic and law is by studying how legal reasoning actually happens in real life.

Pluralistic Axiology: Many Values

Peña has suggested a "pluralistic axiology" to understand ethics, which is about what is good and bad.

• Different Ways to Value Actions: He divides ethical theories into groups. Some value actions based on their own features. Others value them based on their results.
• Multiple Values: Peña is a "pluralist," meaning he believes there isn't just one single way to judge if an action is good. Actions should be judged in many ways, using different values.
• Gradual Ethics: Since his approach is gradual, ethical judgments are seen as having many degrees. An action can be both good and bad, or better in some ways and worse in others.
• Focus on Life Courses: He thinks that judging single actions is often too narrow. Instead, it's better to look at a longer period of someone's life, including their goals and habits.
• Dealing with Contradictions: Peña admits that having many values can make it hard to decide what to do. Sometimes, there's no single "best" choice. In these cases, choices are based on which values a person cares about most. He believes that ethical contradictions cannot always be avoided.

Social Evolutionism: Human Progress

Peña's ideas about history suggest that human progress is real and continuous.

• Progress is Natural: He argues that progress is a natural result of human reason. Societies tend to improve their well-being by combining the wisdom of their members.
• Slow and Steady: Progress happens slowly, increasing material and intellectual assets, and making laws fairer. There are no sudden "leaps" in history.
• Shared Human Story: Peña believes human history is universal, both looking back and forward. We have a common past and a common future.
• Collective Minds: He acknowledges that societies have "collective minds," which are built on individual minds. Societies need shared memories and plans to live together.
• Overcoming Setbacks: While he recognizes that disasters like wars can cause setbacks, he believes human societies always find a way to restart their upward journey.
• Right to a Better Life: Peña thinks that the meaning of human life, for individuals and groups, is to improve. He believes everyone has a fundamental right to a better life, including rights to food, work, and housing.

Republican Republicanism: The Role of the State

Peña's legal philosophy is a "natural-law" theory. It comes from the idea that law is about reason and the common good.

• Natural Society: He believes humans are naturally social and form communities under authority. This authority's job is to work for the public interest.
• Rejecting State vs. Society: Peña rejects the idea that the State and civil society are completely separate. He thinks this idea causes misunderstandings.
• "Republic" Means Public: For Peña, "Republic" means the State, and "republicanism" means giving importance to the State's public mission. This includes the government helping and managing public resources, as long as there's no king or queen.
• "Republican Republicanism": He uses this phrase to describe his political ideas. It means the State's job is to work for the common good by organizing public services. He argues that states have always been involved in many activities, not just keeping order.
• Planned Economy: This idea supports increasing the State's role, with a planned economy and public ownership. Private property should also serve the common good. He draws ideas from groups like the British Fabian Society and the Spanish school of Krausist philosophers.
• Against Market Economy: Peña believes that only the State's involvement can provide direction and unity. Without it, he sees only harsh competition.
• Different from Civic Republicanism: Peña's "republican republicanism" differs from "civic neo-republicanism" in several ways:

* It rejects monarchy, while civicism doesn't focus on the form of government. * It is "statist," meaning it supports a strong role for the State, unlike civicism which often sees the public area as neutral. * It recognizes that individuals don't have to be involved in public issues, while civicism promotes public participation. * It believes in many values (like welfare, love, liberty, equality), while civicism often focuses on just one value, freedom.

• Earthian Republic: A key part of Peña's republicanism is the idea of an "Earthian Republic." He believes that regional groups divide humanity and cause conflicts. He supports a united, global community.

Writings by Lorenzo Peña

• 2017. Visión lógica del derecho: Una defensa del racionalismo jurídico. Plaza y Valdés.
• 2016. Conceptos y valores constitucionales, co-edited with Txetxu Ausín. Plaza y Valdés.
• 2015. Pasando fronteras: El valor de la movilidad humana. México/Madrid: Plaza y Valdés. (Coedited with Txetxu Ausín.)
• 2015. «El principio de confianza y los vaticinios apocalípticos», Diálogo Filosófico, # 92, pp. 243–265.
• 2015. «Fundamentos metafísicos del Derecho Natural», in Una filosofía del Derecho en acción: Homenaje al Profesor Andrés Ollero, edited by Cristina Hermida and José Antonio Santos. Madrid: Congreso de los Diputados, 2015, pp. 411–442.
• 2014. «Los grados del vivir», in Bioética en plural, ed. by M. Teresa López de la Vieja. México/Madrid: Plaza y Valdés. (Coauthored with Txetxu Ausín.)
• 2013. «Una fundamentación jusnaturalista de los derechos humanos», Bajo Palabra, II Época, # 8, pp. 47–84.
• 2012. «Derechos y deberes de nuestros hermanos inferiores», in Animales no humanos entre animales humanos, ed. by Jimena Rodríguez Carreño, Madrid: Plaza y Valdés, pp. 277–328.
• 2012. «Soft Deontic Logic», in Soft Computing in Humanities and Social Sciences, ed. by Rudolf Seising & Veronica Sanz. Studies in Fuzziness and Soft Computing, Volume 273, 2012, pp 157–172. Springer V. (Coauthored with Txetxu Ausín.)
• 2012. «Cultural Entities», in The furniture of the world: Essays in ontology and metaphysics, ed. by Guillermo Hurtado & Óscar Nudler. Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi, pp. 281–302.
• 2010. Ética y servicio público, México/Madrid: Plaza y Valdés. (Coedited with Txetxu Ausín and Oscar Diego.)
• 2010. «Paso a paso: Una solución gradualista a la paradoja del sorites, lejos de la indeterminación y del agnosticismo», Bajo Palabra, II Época, Nº 5, pp. 399–418. (Coauthored with Marcelo Vásconez.)
• 2010. Los derechos fundamentales del hombre en el mundo de hoy (Human Rights nowadays), Special Issue of Arbor, # 745. (Coedited with Txetxu Ausín.)
• 2009. Estudios Republicanos: Contribución a la filosofía política y jurídica, México/Madrid: Plaza y Valdés.
• 2009. «Normatividad y contingencia», in Aproximaciones a la contingencia, ed. by Concha Roldán & Óscar Moro, Madrid: Los libros de la Catarata, pp. 25–64.
• 2007. «El cumulativismo», in Pluralidad de la filosofía analítica, ed. by David P. Chico & Moisés Barroso, Madrid-México: Plaza y Valdés, pp. 343–386.
• 2006. Los derechos positivos: Las demandas justas de acciones y prestaciones, (co-edited with Txetxu Ausín). México/Madrid: Plaza y Valdés.
• 2000. «Paraconsistent Deontic Logic with Enforceable Rights», in Frontiers of Paraconsistent Logic ed. by D. Batens, Ch. Mortensen, G. Priest & J.-P. van Bendegem. Baldford (England): Research Studies Press Ltd. (RSP) [Logic and Computation Series]. pp. 29–47. [Coauthored with Txetxu Ausín.]
• 1999. «The Coexistence of Contradictory Properties in the Same Subject According to Aristotle», Apeiron 32/3, pp. 203–30.
• 1998. «C₁-Compatible Transitive Extensions of System CT», Logique et Analyse, Nº 161-162-163, pp. 135–143.
• 1993. «In Defense of Full-Scale Planning», Science and Society 57/2 (New York: Guilford Press), pp. 204–13.
• 1993. Introducción a las lógicas no-clásicas. México: UNAM Pp. 240.
• 1992. Hallazgos filosóficos. Salamanca: Ediciones de la Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca. Pp. 363
• 1991. Rudimentos de lógica matemática. Madrid: CSIC. Pp. vi+324.
• 1990. «Partial Truth, Fringes and Motion: Three Applications of a Contradictorial Logic». Studies in Soviet Thought, vol 37 (Dordrecht: Kluwer), pp. 83–122.
• 1989. «Verum et ens conuertuntur: The Identity between Truth and Existence within the Framework of a Contradictorial Modal Set-Theory», in Paraconsistent Logic: Essays on the Inconsistent, ed. by G. Priest, R. Routley & J. Norman. Munich: Philosophia Verlag, pp. 563–612
• 1987. Fundamentos de ontología dialéctica. Madrid: Siglo XXI. Pp. 427.
• 1985. El ente y su ser: un estudio lógico-metafísico. León: Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de León. Pp. 568.
• 1981. La coincidencia de los opuestos en Dios. Quito: Educ (Ediciones de la Universidad Católica). Pp. 568.

See also

In Spanish: Lorenzo Peña para niños