摘要
本文所選譯的書信，反映了二十四歲的吳經熊當時廣泛的求知慾，他於法學、哲學、文學、心理學、藝術學、數學等無一不涉獵其中，這和他在古老的中國推動文藝復興的強烈自我期許不無關係。其中與法學有關的粗淺討論，則集中在英美契約法的對價（約因）理論。吳經熊在何姆斯法律預測說的啟發中，主張對價除了出自當事人的締約動機外，更應有一客觀判準，即對於允諾人履約可能性的合理期待。
The letters which the article collected and translated reflect John Wu’s extensive curiosity when he was 24. Due to his strong self-expectation for prompting Chinese renaissance, he dipped himself into law, philosophy, literature, psychology, art and mathematics. In this article, simple discussions about law are focused on the consideration theory in Anglo-American contract law. John Wu, who was enlightened by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.’s prediction theory of law, advocated that the consideration is not only based on the contractual parties’ motives, but also the objective criteria, i.e. reasonable expectation for the possibility of promisee’s performance.
關鍵詞
吳經熊、何姆斯、信件、對價
John Wu, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Letters, Consideration