Opposition between Liberalism and Conservatism Essay

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 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

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

One has to try as much as possible to try to preserve the rest of humankind from any evil that can happen to the other people. Neo-liberalism emphasizes that all being are equal and independent and no man is supposed to harm each other’s innocent life, health or possession as it recognizes all being as workmanship of on omnipotent (God). Moreover, no man that has the liberty to destroy himself and man should not have more than other hence encourage sharing such thing as power. For example, although people punish each other for transgressions, the offender has the right to seek forgiveness from the offended and can assist the offended to recover from the offended to make satisfaction for the harm he or she suffered. On the other hand, classic liberalism encourages the practice of individualism. For example, the essential feature of individualism from the elements provided by Christianity and the philosophy of classical antiquity was first completely developed during the Renaissance and from that time, it has grown and spread into what is today recognized as Western European civilization. Classic liberalism emphasizes on freedom and liberty hence encouraging men to develop their own individual gifts and bents. Whenever, small one man’s sphere is, he is encouraged to view and observe himself as supreme (Friedrich 7-14).

The ideals and the composition of liberals and conservatives are radically different at times, and yet these same beliefs work together to make up the basic framework of American political thought. They both have the same goals for prosperity and yet they have polar opposite ways of achieving them. Ideologically, they are at odds with the size of government and the role that it plays. Some want big government that provides for people, while others elect for a small government that does not interfere with the lives of people. As is expected liberals tend to vote for certain issues that conservatives will disagree with and vice versa. Of course the issues are not random, each side will vote for and against particular kinds of issues.

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.

Many people have a strong belief in what side they take a part of, but some others may not be as informed, thus putting them in the middle of the two sides. A few of the topics that liberals and conservatives usually have different views on include abortion, affirmative action, death penalty, the economy, education, stem cell research,climate change, gun control, homeland security, healthcare, immigration, religion & government, same sex marriage, social security, taxes, and welfare. Although many college students do not have a full knowledge on many of these topics, they do have enough to form an opinion on them. Their opinions on these tops are usually what persuade them to fall under either the liberal or conservative category.

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

The book starts with a discussion on, what does it mean to be a liberal and what events take place to thrust these political ideals into our political environment? To be a liberal has meant different things at different time in our history. For purposes of this book, Brinkley focuses on what it means to be a liberal at the turn of the twentieth century. The concept of “progressivism” or “reform” liberalism begins to take shape “the belief in the interconnectedness of society, and thus in the need to protect individuals, communities, and the government itself from excessive corporate power,

Answer: Liberalism is a theory based on the morality and goodness of humans. It favors

Liberalism is a collection of political, social and economic philosophies that is centered around the rights of personal liberties, civil rights, economic freedom, controlled and democratic government and the rule of law. A controlled and democratic government is instrumental to liberalism. A controlled government is one restricted by the law. The most common example of this can be found in the United States Constitution. The Constitution has outlined the roles and restrictions of each branch of government while also setting a system of checks and balances.

The constitution sets forth the purpose behind are nations founding of a new government in 1787. It explains the purpose of our government through 5 key statements. The government must establish justice, promote domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty. Though there are two sides of the political spectrum that envision a way to fulfill the purposes set forth in the preamble. One side of the political spectrum includes the liberal and the other the conservatives. In the middle is the moderates they take both sides of the political spectrum and combine them for a moderate views

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.

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.