Read the following two passages regarding the theoretical foundations of intellectual property law. Then, match each proposition to the statement that best describes the authors' stances toward it.
Passage A
The foundation of intellectual property rights lies in the natural rights of the creator. As John Locke posited regarding physical property, individuals have a moral entitlement to the fruits of their labor. When an author writes a novel, they mix their intellectual labor with the raw materials of ideas, thereby establishing a fundamental moral right to ownership. From this perspective, intellectual property rights are not pragmatic policy instruments constructed by the state; they are recognitions of pre-existing natural rights. The law's role is simply to protect these inherent entitlements against infringement, much as it protects physical property from theft. Indeed, the historical development of copyright law reveals a consistent struggle to protect authors from publishers who sought to exploit their labor. Consequently, any limitation on these rights, such as fixed expiration terms, is fundamentally a compromise of the author's moral claim, tolerated out of political necessity rather than principled justice.
Passage B
Intellectual property regimes are best understood as utilitarian constructs designed to solve a specific economic problem: the public goods nature of information. Because creative works are non-rivalrous and easily copied, creators would lack sufficient financial incentive to produce them without legal protection. Thus, the state grants temporary, artificial monopolies—such as copyrights and patents—solely to encourage innovation for the benefit of society as a whole. Intellectual property rights are not natural or moral entitlements; they are purely instrumental privileges. The goal of IP law should be to strike a delicate balance: providing just enough protection to incentivize creators, while ensuring that works ultimately enter the public domain to foster further societal advancement. Treating these rights as fundamental moral claims dangerously obscures their true purpose and inevitably leads to overbroad protections that stifle the very innovation they were meant to encourage.
- Intellectual property rights are fundamental moral entitlements that exist independently of state policy.Passage A explicitly agrees; Passage B explicitly disagrees.
- The primary purpose of intellectual property law is to serve as an instrumental tool to maximize overall societal welfare.Passage B explicitly agrees; Passage A explicitly disagrees.
- The historical evolution of copyright law demonstrates a persistent effort to defend creators against exploitative publishers.Passage A explicitly agrees; Passage B's position cannot be determined.
- The non-rivalrous nature of creative works makes them susceptible to being easily copied.Passage B explicitly agrees; Passage A's position cannot be determined.