Scope of the Analogical Reasoning: A Critical Appraisal of the Fighi Methodology of Penal Analogy

Although discussion of the scope of the analogy seems to be a logical offshoot of its validity, the main concern of this article is to open a rather different window for the validity of the analogical reasoning via examining the scope of the analogy and arguing for reasonability of certain legal and fighi propositions. Critical evaluation of an extreme textualism, explaining causality and identification of the cause would enable us to appreciate the logical status of analogical reasoning. The fighi approach to validity of the analogy in penal issues has been criticized through illustrating its methodological inconsistency. A major contribution of this article is to offer a consistence theory of analogy compatible with logic of fiqh. At the end, by deploying a comparative study of the analogy under the Iranian and the England's systems the writer has demonstrated many similarities of these two different systems.