i) Conservatism as an Ideology
Conservatism is an ideology that strongly values tradition and continues to utilise the policies put in place by our ancestors before us. Because tradition is fundamental to conservatives they are very susceptible to change their policies: “change will only be supported if it does no harm and if this can be clearly demonstrated” (Young, 2015). Conservatism itself is a pragmatic ideology with no real goals or purpose other than to preserve the traditions put in by the generations previous to us.
“Conservatives look backwards, not forwards” (Alexander, 2014)
Conservatives believe that “we have a debt to those who are dead as well as those who are alive” (Alexander, 2014) meaning that humans owe so much to their
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(Goodwin, 1992) argues that conservatives believe that humans are subject “natural inequality” and some people are just “innately superior to others” whether this is through age, gender or social class etc.
Main Political Thinkers
Edmund Burke (1729 - 1797) is a significant writer and thinker for conservatism. One of his most important works was on the French Revolution, “Reflections on the Revolution in France” (1790). In the text he noted on the bloodshed and chaos directly caused by the revolution and did not want it to come to England to wreak havoc there also. A quote from “Reflections on the Revolution in France” notes on how a humans selfish and narrow minded views can severely damage the world.
“A spirit of innovation is generally the result of a selfish temper and confined views. People will not look forward to posterity, who never look backward to their ancestors.”
ii) Socialism as an
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“Even if a socialist is conscious of history and wants to understand it, he does not suppose that we owe a debt to the traditions found in history”
What is meant by this quote is that we can reflect on our past, but not dedicate our lives to recreating history in order to pay our ancestors back for all they have done for us: “the conservative… does suppose we owe such a debt” (Alexander, 2014). Human nature from both socialism and conservatism can relate to the quote. Socialism reflects back on previous points in time so they can interpret and understand the way of thinking by political thinkers and policy makers at the time, but doesn’t feel they need to incorporate the traditions of political movements to create social continuity. Conservatives look back on political movements and points of time in history and examines the political processes involved in certain situations. As a sign of respect to their ancestors and a way to pay back the debt to them; they introduce and incorporate the traditions and political ideas into modern day society as they believe it is what is necessary to pay them
History also helps prepare one to face the future, so one does not repeat the same mistakes. The quote “History cannot give us a program for the future, but it can give us a fuller understanding of ourselves and of our common humanity, so that we can better face the future” explains that history is not something one can program and plan out. History is information of events of what happened such as, how one’s background and places came to be, so one does not have to question life and the world. History also helps one by revealing important information that can be used to help improve the future. For example, 9/11 was a terrible event that had happened in 2001. People use that piece of information and make a better future. After the event, the security of airports and the military was improved drastically to prevent the mistakes from happening again. If the same mistake were to happened again, money and time would be wasted to recover the damages and many people will lose their lives. The quote means one cannot program and plan out history for the future, but history can be used as information to understand the world and improve the
(Davies, 1997) Conservatives are mostly for preserving the society instead of a takeover, which emphasizes stability.(McLean and McMillan, 2009) Viscourt Hailsham a former chairman of the British Conservative Party described conservatism. "Conservatism is not so much a philosophy as an attitude, a constant force, performing a timeless function in the development of a free society, and corresponding to a deep and permanent requirement of human nature itself."(Hailsham, 1959)
(History.com) This quote
Conservatism, traditional or new, was one of the most powerful ideologies in Europe. Otto von Bismarck practiced a new form of conservatism because he advocated for lower class, religious freedoms, and socialized the education system. This new form of conservatism received backlash by most other political groups.
We have to do with the past only as we can make it useful to the present and the future- Frederick Douglass.
Before the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, liberalism and conservatism were two big ideologies in European society; many citizens were fighting towards liberalism while some were still standing behind conservatism. Meanwhile, many individuals, along with several organizations, were moving closer towards socialist ideals. Socialism’s role in society during the nineteenth and twentieth century changed how various thinkers approached the issues of labor, production, and property.
What is conservatism? Conservatism are views that are against the ideas of liberalism and socialism. A conservative person believes in independence, a free market government and they believe in taking responsibility for your own success. About 40 % of American
Conservatism is defined as the belief in the value of established and traditional practices in politics and society (Merriam-Webster). Another definition of it is the dislike of change or new ideas in a particular area (Merriam-Webster). So most of their policies are rooted in tradition and history, generally keeping things the way they have been in the past. Another one of the ideologies they have in their party's Fiscal Conservatism this means they are pro-big businesses and think you should have low income taxes and also they want to deregulate the economy (Justin Quinn). From this economic ideology it goes hand and hand with their main stance on making a smaller government to control less of your life. Also they generally would rather keep things the same than changing
What I find ironically funny is the statement quote used for this essay topic, “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it”. This is something our government needs to take heed to, because they are the ones repeating history. Right now as we speak banks are again selling houses to people that cannot really afford the payments, they are signing contracts without reading the fine print of the balloon rates that are going to make it impossible to keep their
On the other hand, the ideologies of the Republican Party originate from the principles of the classical conservatism philosophy. Classical conservatism's underlying idea is to protect and conserve established traditional values in the name of "liberty, equality, and fraternity," or to reinstate ideal values that are in decline (Franks 28). According to Edmund Burke, who is regarded as the intellectual source of classical conservatism, the preservation of the values of tradition in family and the Church is more sound in forming a government than "reason" (Jones 261). Thus, classical conservatism rules out the idea of empowering people who do not "deserve" power, completely opposing the underlying factor of the individual's natural
The most expressed ideology in American law is conservatism. Conservatism is defined as being any political thought that leans towards tradition when changes are coming. American law favors tradition and rarely changes. The beginning of conservatism can be traced back to two different events. In the 16th century, Richard Hooker, a Anglican theologian, tried to put an idea similar to conservatism in place. However, it is more arguable that the origins of conservatism came from the French Revolution in 1789. There are many different types of conservatism, eight to be exact.
Many philosophers and theorists have spoken on the value, or lack thereof, of revolution. In Second Treatise of Government, John Locke builds the concept of a “social contract,” which outlines responsibilities of the government and what can be done if the state fails to uphold its duties. Edmund Burke views political rebellion in a different light. He writes in Reflections on the Revolution in France that upheaval does excessive harm to the state, and, by extension, the people. While both Locke and Burke agree that rebellion is useful to the growth of a state, they differ on a few main points. First, they disagree in terms of what circumstances warrant revolution. Second, they each believe it should take different forms and work to different extents. Finally, Locke and Burke believe revolution tends to have positive or negative effects, respectively. Their views on each of these points will be discussed in turn.
Liberalism and conservatism have been political ideas and thoughts from the very birth of our democracy. Their views and points of the government's role in a democratic society have changed over the years, but the basic ideas and principles have remained the same. There are many different degrees of liberalism and conservatism as almost anyone can be labeled. Some individuals are radical and extreme while others stand on more of a neutral territory, but the debates between the understood ideas of each group have continued throughout the history of the United States. We will take liberalism's Gary Doore and conservatism's Irving Kristol as modern day examples and compare and contrast the
“Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work
Edmund Burke published the Reflections on the Revolution in France in 1790; after the Bastille had been stormed by the Paris mol. He reflects upon about how France was very chaotic. Burke opposed the values of his contemporary revolutionaries; and he predicted that the French revolution would cause problems of fear and chaos to the country. Burke also believed that the revolutionary leaders were more interested in themselves and that they wanted power, however; and really did not care about the well-being of the French people. He believed in the concepts of liberty, equality and the right for everyone; he argues that people should have the opportunity to own their private property. Furthermore, Burke viewed the revolution as a violent takeover of the government, emphasizing that citizens should not have the right to do this. He also argues about importance of tradition in that tradition is what holds society together.