Self-government in private law, as the core principle of modern civil law, was the cornerstone of the guarantee of citizens ' freedom of property, contract and marriage, and could be developed in western societies, a principle that was gradually shared withSexual freedomDeep bindings have even evolved into a legal basis for influencing the ethics of traditional marriage and family. And my country stands byPublic orderBehind the bottom line, the rejection of the unlimited expansion of private law autonomy is the fundamental choice of legal values and social order。
At the heart of private law autonomy is the private sphere of life, where the individual has the autonomy to decide, and where the public power does not intervene as much as possible. In the west, this principle continues to be extended from the economic and property spheres to the physical and intimate spheres, ultimately becoming the strongest legal underpinning of sexual freedom. In their legal logic, adult sexual choice, cohabitation and illegitimate procreation fall within the realm of personal autonomy, with no right of interference by the law, and above all with morality. Under this concept, marriage has gradually been reduced to ordinary contracts, non-marital cohabitation, open relationships have been considered normal lifestyles, and bigamy has become more liberal, which is the central reason why bigamy is rarely pursued in the west。
However, the linkage between private law autonomy and sexual freedom was not intended to be private law autonomy, but rather a radical interpretation of the principle. Private law autonomy is premised on the fact that it does not run counter to public decency and does not harm the public interest of society, but the west has amplified individual freedom indefinitely, equated sexual freedom with absolute rights and ignored the fundamental role of marriage and family in social stability. This excessive freedom has led to a loose family structure and a blurring of ethical boundaries, which seems to guarantee individual rights and deconstruct the basic order of society。
The principle of autonomy has also been established in our civil law, but the red line has always been assigned to freedom — to respect public decency and to preserve the institution of marriage and family. We recognize the freedom of marriage and the autonomy to live, but we must not allow acts contrary to family ethics to be allowed in the name of private law autonomy. This is why, even if the threshold for the conviction of bigamy is very high, the judiciary is still at the very bottom of the law, which does not equate cohabitation, children born out of wedlock with bigamy, let alone leave to marry on vacation, or maliciously circumvent marriage laws。
Self-government in private law guaranteed rights, but could not be an excuse for breaking the bottom line; sexual freedom respected choices, but could not prevail over marriage ethics and social order. The western model was private law autonomy under extreme individualism, while china's choice was to find a balance between freedom and order, between individuals and families。
For ordinary people, it is clear from the relationship between the two that the law never protects the freedom of the bottom line, but rather the right to borders and responsibilities. The legal basis for marriage and respect for the ethical values of the family are the ways to live in accordance with the good social order and are far more meaningful than the blind pursuit of so-called absolute freedom。
