Modern Political Thoery and Liberalism Essay

The further development of industrialisation led to social and economic inequality. This led to a revision of classical liberal ideas to prevent the spread of ignorance and poverty. It is suggested that modern liberals have betrayed classical liberal ideas as they embrace collectivism and diverge from classical liberalism on issues such as freedom. However, it can be argued that modern liberals have simply built on classical liberal ideas such as its commitment to the individual.

The idea of Liberalism, especially in the United States, is centered about the unalienable rights of an individual such as the freedoms found in the United States Bill of Rights. In the book, The Strange Death of American Liberalism by H.W. Brands, Brands says that liberalism in the United States could only survive during times of war. The United States retreats into liberalism when there is a war going on and they need the federal government’s assistance. On the other hand, the book, Liberalism: The Genius of American Ideals by Marcus G. Raskin, argued that there was no escaping from liberalism. According to Raskin, liberalism has not faded into history like many people think. Liberalism is important in the United States because it drives

People’s views on a wide range of issues are influenced or determined by the kind of foundational belief systems they hold. Therefore, the difference in the nature of opinions among individuals or groups of people alludes to the existence of distinct belief systems. In the course of history, the distinction between Liberalism and Conservatism has become more vivid particularly in the political arena where various players have expressed opposing points of view regarding the nation’s future. It is indeed undisputable that the foundational beliefs of Liberalism are diametrically opposed to those of Conservatism. This essay will give a definition of each term and describe how the two oppose each other.

Liberalism, in general, was an ideological movement that emerged out of the ideas of the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution in the early 19th century. It embraced the ideas of individualism which were established in the Renaissance and Reformation era. The Renaissance period sparked a belief in the importance of the individual in society. It helped promote the beliefs of classical liberalism which gradually formed into the liberal ideology of the 19th century. Individuals that were waiting to get their individual rights and freedoms were allowed to finally gain liberty and power through this period of time. Classical liberalism developed

Neo-liberalism is associated with economic liberalism whose campaign support provides economic liberations, free trade and open markets, privatization, deregulation and promoting the role of private institutions present in new society. Classic liberalism criticizes the neo-liberalism objective of introducing liberalization to bring about gradual increase of wealth and freedom among nations, however, classic liberalism explains that instead of realization of wealth and freedom, liberalization resulted to constant fight proposals that threatened the progress of achieving wealth and freedom among nations. Neo-liberalism aimed to prevent and control monopoly situations such that if there are no bodies

Typically Liberalism can be categorized into two different strands, Classical and Modern (yet some thinkers advocate a third strand that is referred to as Neo-Liberalism), each characterized by their differing and to some extent unavoidably overlapping attitudes regarding the theory behind the ideology and how it should be put into practice. Prior to examining how these relate to one another and before making any comparisons, it is important to give a definition, as best as possible, of Liberalism as a concept.

The case study of Manchester demonstrates that the poor conditions of the hard work that the workers put in so that their families could survive, the suffering of the workers, the improvements of life conditions in the city, and the beautiful city itself all contributed to the extent of the progress from the Industrial Revolution. As the Industrial Revolution began, citizens worked hard to achieve an alluring city, but urbanization caused pushback. Maps drawn during this time exhibit the growth of Manchester from 1750-1850 due to urbanization (Doc 1). These two maps developed to reveal the difference of Manchester from the past to present.

During the nineteenth century, many economic changes took place in Europe due to the Industrial Revolution. They dramatically increased the number of European industrial workers. The changes completely altered the conditions under which they lived and worked. How to improve these lives was where the conflict was. The opinions varied from some people believing the government should intervene, some believing it would better if the government didn’t interfere and also some believing the workers should improve their own lives.

The working class during the Industrial Revolution made up 80 percent of society, the other 20 was composed of wealthy business owners. People in the 1800’s migrated from shops in their home to work in dangerous and life threatening factories. While many say this was a positive period, it came with negative consequences. The Industrial Revolution was more negative than positive because working conditions were very unsafe, workers worked extremely long hours, and employees worked for cheap wages.

The movement was one example where the working class converged to persuade the government to lessen their work hours. Although the 1833 Factory Act was a disappointment for the workers since it did not grant a ten-hour day, it did reduce the working hours for children. It also created allowed for the passing of the 1847 Ten Hours Act, which made it illegal to work more than ten hours a day. The combined effort of the working class became a relentless burden on the government as it became hard to ignore the demands of the people and they felt obliged to pass limited form to avoid further more violent

During the Industrial Revolution everyone had to adapt to the massive work load that was created. Back then demands for products was so high, the only thought and concern the Business Man had was how he was going to keep the currency rolling in. They used Humans as machines, without care and regards to their health and well being. Once they were faced with consequence for their disregard for life, laws were put into place to protect the workers. This in turned probably caused them more money and slower production in obeying the law.

The conservative movement has played a crucial role in American politics in the post war era. Ronald Story and Bruce Laurie indentify various elements of the American conservatism. These elements include challenging authoritarian governments and modernist culture, upholding tradition, Christian religion and the rule of law, defending western civilization, and supporting republicanism. American conservatism has been characterized by competing ideologies and tension throughout history. The Americans who are politically liberal and economically conservative favor free trade, minimal state intervention, low taxes, and a small government. On the other hand, conservatives hold the view that American traditional values are normally undermined by

This first revolution was establish in England, then spread to Europe, US and worldwide. Due to demand for work people moved into cities looking for jobs. As people in fluctuate cities, it leads to overcrowding and urban living in the cities. There are no regulations or policies that enforce working conditions and age. During this time children were able to work in factories, cleaning chimneys and domestic services. Several fatalities and injuries were due to unsafe working environment. Another factor was slavery, it was abolished. The rise of the term business and ownership was an arising argument. Limited liability was sought to be worth full while others felt that direct control will be effective.

In America, there are three major civic stances: conservatism, liberalism, and libertarianism. The liberal stance is the only stance, which offers the foundation to move forward. The following paper will briefly explain, certain aspects of conservatism and libertarianism, and will advance the idea, America must move forward with a more liberal attitude. At heart, this writing will argue a strong government is of the utmost importance in moving this country forward to the future. While other political agendas advocate liberty and freedom, the liberal stance truly offers a realistic approach and method of achieving those aspects of American life.

In a world where the drive for power and the will to dominate are held to be fundamental aspects of human nature as the Classical Realists would argue, the necessity for International Organizations cannot be dismissed as some liberalists argue. According to Iriye 2002, IGO’s consists of institutions that come into existence through formal agreements among nations and represent their corresponding governments (Iriye 2002, Pg. 12-14). With that in mind, some liberalists argue that joining international organizations and institutions like the United Nations socializes some leaders so that their motivations are more benign (Dunne 2011, Pg. 103). I am convinced to a certain extent with this idea as I feel that even though classical realists argue that every man has within him the desire to rule or the desire for power (Dunne and Schmidt 2011, Pg. 90). When several leaders come together all from different IR theoretical backgrounds (liberalists, realists, constructivists) each decision they make comes collectively thus not leaving too much room for their individual biases based on their theoretical perspectives to impact important international relations issues "negatively". Although I highly doubt if anything can be done to control the human desire for power accumulation as a classical realist would say, a part of the psyche of man, I do believe the liberalists argument to be of substance.