Classical Liberalism vs Classical Conservatism

As liberalism ideology evolved and championed by the economic leaders, it pose a threat to the existing social settings such as the presence of the nobility, and the church. The attempt to defend existing social arrangement is what brought about conservatism. Conservatives stood against the ideas of liberals in a rational for maintaining existing traditional political structures and the centralization of power. They stood against transferring political responsibility to the common people under the disguise of equality (Shively, 2014).

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.

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.

Typically, liberalism is categorised into two separate components; classical liberalism, which was fashioned during the 19th century as a result of the industrial revolution, and the more recent Modern Liberalism which emerged as industrialisation continued within the UK. Although both divisions of Liberalism unavoidably overlap in attitudes and approaches regarding the theory behind the ideology, I believe, fundamentally, that clear tensions between these aspects of Liberalism are more evident when analysing this ideology.

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.

Conservative (most Republicans) is a political and social philosophy that promotes retaining traditional social institutions.

Classical liberalism allow an individual to use primary social value of liberty in the political culture that extent until liberties of the others disturbed. Classical liberal ideas often form the basis for opposition to the use of government to attain social and personal objectives. They stress reliance on private the free market to determine the best outcomes rather than the private initiatives [1].

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

The Conservatives had four main ideologies. The first ideology was brought about by Edmund Burke (1729-97). He was the first philosopher of the party though originally a Whig. However, the ideology’ traditional respect for the past’ was established. This ideology believed in order and stability in a nation. In addition, they believed in hierarchy, the monarchy, aristocracy, Church of England, patriotism, love of the land and distrust of progress. (Holmes pg 278)

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

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.

Historian Russell Kirk believes there are six basic tenets of all conservatism. To begin conservatives believe "in a transcendent order or body of natural law, which rules society as well as conscience. Political problems at their roots are religious and or moral problems" (9). The ideal that religion and morality can have influence over political and social problems is widely seen in the United States. The Republicans are often the choice of people with conservative Christian ideology.

This essay will assess the relationship between liberalism and conservatism by exploring the differences in ideological beliefs of these two ideologies. Ideology can be defined as “set of interrelated and more or less coherent ideas” that constitutes of both “descriptive and normative element” on how a society works (Heywood, 2007, pp. 6-7). One of the most popular ideology in contemporary politics is liberalism which accord individual liberty and free market as its primary priority. On the other hand, conservatism is generally known for advocating tradition, societal state and authority. Firstly, we will look at theories developed by liberalism and conservatism on creation of state. It would then be followed by liberalism’s notion of individuality and individual liberty versus conservatism’s emphasis on individual imperfectionism and need for society. Thereafter, we will observe liberalism and conservatism as political ideology and how it has evolved over time. The essay will be summed up by a conclusion in the end. The terms, liberalism and conservatism mentioned in this essay are intended to be synonymous to their traditional or classical thoughts and beliefs. Every argument presented in this essay are intended to support the claim that liberalism and conservatism are not compatible ideologies. By compatible, I meant being consistent without any disagreements.

While classical liberalism and mercantilism have fundamentally different ideological roots, both theories have profound implications beyond the international economy, creating ripples in the worldwide political and social climate. Thus, each theory needs to be evaluated to maximize the economic policy’s benefits and minimize its negative consequences. Along this line, the concept of freedom in classical liberalism offers clear benefits to market growth, yet the invisible hand does not always intervene to save these economies from the catastrophic effects of inequality and irrational human decisions. Therefore, a balance between freedom and state intervention needs to be reached. Keynesianism offers one approach to maximizing freedom, while still maintaining a safety net in terms of limited state intervention. The issue of security is relevant and important to consider within an economic system, yet the aggressive approach of malevolent intimidation demonstrates a social and political shortcoming within the mercantilist theory. Ultimately, in order to address the issues of inequality, imperialism, and violence within our international community, we have to start by understanding the impact of our globalized economic policies. Once we do this, we can start to move towards a more peaceful, equal, and flourishing society.

The late U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt himself defined liberalism as the ‘saving grace for the far-sighted conservative,’ and also ‘reform what you want to preserve.’