" Natural law is that which nature has taught to all animals ". The Roman roots of legal anthropocentrism

Against the backdrop of the Roman conception of " natura ", and in particular Cicero's De natura deorum, the lecture will offer an interpretation of a famous, powerful and enigmatic text by Ulpian (D. 1.1.3-4 and D. 1.1.6). Three categories of law are distinguished : natural law, the law of nations and civil law. This text forms the basis of the modern development of jusnaturalism. Although it can sometimes give the impression of placing humans and other animals in the same legal ecosystem, it actually expresses the centrality of humans as beings endowed with reason.