sudden change, radical innovation, and newness in
fashion. For Burke, the ideas, practices, and traditions
(including in art, music, religion, and economics) that
have endured for many years embody the best in West-
ern civilization and have a civilizing effect on later gen-
erations. New ideas and techniques are unproven until
they have stood “the test of time,” so a healthy society
will pass down (through education and culture) the
best of the historical past through training of the young
in CLASSICAL philosophy, art, music, and literature.
Humans are not born good but require careful nur-
turing and training to develop into good, moral, civi-
lized beings. If proper training of the young is
neglected or radical innovations in education and the
family interjected, chaos and misery will follow. For
Burke, humanity is distinguished from other species by
its “taste” or aesthetic, artistic appreciation of beauty. If
that human capacity to produce and love beauty is cul-
tivated, it will create an ethical, civilized populace. This
requires exposure to the most beautiful art, music,
landscapes, architecture, and manners at a young age.
Much of Burke’s objection to radical reform movements
comes from their rejection of the past, which he sees as
the source of civility.
Burke’s mature conservatism is developed in res-
ponse to the French Revolution of 1789 in his book,
Reflections on the French Revolution.The French revolu-
tionaries’ claim that they could remake and improve
society according to DEMOCRATICtheories was repulsive
to Burke. Such “speculative” philosophy for him
ignored the slow, organic progress of political change.
A SOCIAL CONTRACT for Burke was not (as it is in
ROUSSEAU) something you could quickly define in your
mind and apply to society; the true social contract is a
long-term, cultural phenomenon between the past, the
present, and the future. Sudden political change, with-
out respect for past traditions and other cultural
aspects (family, property, religion, education) will pro-
duce a nightmare of violence and disorder rather than
improvement and progress. Burke claims that the
British revolutions (1640, 1688) did not discard the
past wholesale but preserved the valuable traditions of
English law and civilization, only improving upon
major problems (and those gradually). The American
Revolution of 1776 was in this British tradition of pre-
servingEnglish liberties and rights, so Burke approved
of it. What troubled him about the French Revolution
(as would the later Russian and Chinese revolutions)
was the sudden and radical changes made in govern-
ment and society. The violence and oppression that
follows such “idealistic,” utopian revolutions would
not have surprised Burke.
Radical revolutionaries tend to come from the
ranks of the poor, rejected, and dissatisfied in society.
When they gain power, they use it ruthlessly to
destroy the traditional institutions and people who
rejected them. Consequently, for Burke, most postrev-
olutionary governments are cruel and vindictive, and
their leaders mean and angry. Burke contrasts these
mad revolutionaries with the mild, civilized authority
of established rulers.
A Burkean conservative values those institutions
and people who preserve the best of the past. These
consist of the wealthy, the church, the military, the
family, and the well educated. Private PROPERTY, reli-
gion, and traditional education form the cultural foun-
dations for LAW, stability, and good order. Change
should occur gradually and thoughtfully, careful not to
disturb any valuable aspect of the past. Respect for
AUTHORITY, ancestors, and tradition preserves the good
society. This explains why Burke regards old ideas or
“prejudices” as good—they knit together society.
Edmund Burke also argued for the independence of
the British Parliament and the “representative” role of
the parliamentary member (as opposed to the “dele-
gate” role). A representative uses independent wisdom
and judgment, while a delegate simply expresses the
direct will of constituents.
Burke’s philosophy influences later conservative
political thought in the West. His love of the past and
respect for tradition arises during every conservative
period, including during the REAGANera in the United
States and Thatcher era in Great Britain.Further Readings
Burke, E. Reflections on the Revolution in France,C. C. O’Brien,
ed. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1968.
———. Edmund Burke on Government, Politics and Society,
selected by B. W. Hill, ed. London: Fontana, 1975.
———. The Political Philosophy of Edmund Burke,London:
Longman, 1986.
———. Writings and Speeches of Edmund Burke,P. Langford, ed.
Oxford, Eng.: Clarendon Press, 1981.
Dreyer, F. A. Burke’s Politics: A Study in Whig Orthodoxy.Water-
loo, Ont.: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1979.
Freeman, M. Burke and the Critique of Political Radicalism.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1980.
Kramnick, Isaac. The Rage of Edmund Burke: Portrait of an
Ambivalent Conservative. Boulder, Colo.: Basic Books,
1977.
Macpherson, C. B. Burke.Oxford, Eng.: Oxford University
Press, 1982.
O’Gorman, F. Edmund Burke: His Political Philosophy.Blooming-
ton: Indiana University Press, 1973.42 Burke, Edmund