Der Schutz der Kinderseele vor Verletzungen

What is the soul – can it be effectively protected against injury with the help of the law - and is such protection even desirable?
This script deals with the child's right to non-violent upbringing inserted into § 1631 II BGB in 2000 by the legislator and scrutinizes its potential effect as a de facto ban on education. It retraces the historical reasons of bringing the soul concept to the German Civil Code and enters - by reference to interdisciplinary insights e.g. from psychology - that so far insufficiently researched field of using the term "soul" in contrast to the term "incorporeal" within the BGB. For the first time the possibilities and limits of protecting the child's psyche by the Family Law are examined also in context of the child's welfare clause. Plus, the implications of using the term “soul” on legal theory and legal practice are studied.