Edmund Burke (1729-1797) - a prominent English parliamentary, political and public figure, writer, publicist, philosopher, founder of the conservative trend. His activity and work dates back to the 18th century, he became a contemporary of the French Revolution, and also a participant in the parliamentary struggle. His ideas and thoughts had a noticeable impact on socio-political thought, and his works each time provoked lively polemics in society.
Some facts from life
Edmund Burke, whose biography is the subject of this review, was born in Ireland in 1729. His father was a Protestant, his mother a Catholic. He graduated from Trinity College in Dublin, and then, deciding to study law, went to London. However, here he became interested in the career of a writer. Edmund Burke became the editor of the magazine "Annual Register", determining its direction and content for almost his entire life. Then he began his political career, becoming the secretary of the prime minister (in 1765), and later a member of parliament. At the same time (1756), he wrote several essays, thoughts, which brought him some popularity and allowed to make acquaintances in literary circles. Edmund Burke, whose main works are devoted to political and philosophical issues, became famous largely thanks to his parliamentary speeches, as well as pamphlets, which every time became the subject of lively discussions and debates.
Political Views
His parliamentary career began with the fact that he became secretary to the head of government, who belonged to the Whig party. Soon he took a leading place in the faction, which determined his political views. Edmund Burke, the founder of conservatism, nevertheless adhered to liberal views on some points. So, he was a supporter of reforms and believed that the king’s power should be based on the sovereignty of the people. He opposed the absolute monarchy, believing that for a full-fledged political life in the country there should be parties with the ability to express their opinions directly and clearly.
Key Points
But on other issues, Edmund Burke, whose main ideas are conservative, took a different position. So, being, in principle, a supporter of reforms, he still believed that these changes should be gradual and very careful so as not to upset the existing balance of forces and not damage the system that has been formed for centuries. He opposed sharp and decisive transformations, believing that such actions would lead to chaos and anarchy.
About society
Edmund Burke, whose political views can be called conservative with some reservations, opposed the actions of the British government in relation to the North American colonies. He called for economic freedom and easing tax oppression, and spoke about the need to abolish stamp duty. He also criticized the activities of the East India Company in India and achieved a high-profile trial over the country's governor W. Hastings (1785). The process was quite loud and revealed many abuses of the British system of government in this country. Edmund Burke, whose conservatism was particularly evident in the dispute with Hastings, argued that West European norms and laws should operate in India, and his opponent, on the contrary, argued that they were unacceptable in eastern countries.
French revolution
It began in 1789 and shocked all European countries not only with a socio-political coup, but also with its ideas. Edmund Burke sharply opposed the latter, arguing that the views and theories of revolutionaries are speculative, abstract, have no real historical ground, and therefore never take root in society, since they have no roots or history. He contrasted real rights with natural ones. The latter, in his opinion, are only a theory, while in reality there are only those that are worked out by the very course of the historical development of previous generations.
About society and the state
Edmund Burke, whose ideas belong to the conservative trend, denied, did not accept and criticized the theory of social contract J.-J. Rousseau, the essence of which is that the people themselves voluntarily give up part of their freedoms and transfer to the state responsibilities for managing and protecting security. According to Burke, all political, social, economic institutions are based on life practice, on what has been developed over the centuries and tested by time. Therefore, it makes no sense, he said, to try to change the existing order, it can only be carefully improved without any fundamental changes. Otherwise, chaos and anarchy will occur, which happened in revolutionary France.
What did he say about freedom
The author believed that social inequality and social hierarchy always existed; therefore, he considered the projects of revolutionaries to build a just society based on universal equality a utopia. Edmund Burke, whose aphorisms summarized the essence of his philosophy, argued that it was impossible to achieve general equality and universal independence.
He belongs to the following statement on this subject: "In order to have freedom, it must be limited." He regarded the views of the revolutionaries as speculative constructions and pointed to the unrest that had occurred in France after the coup. Largely thanks to his pamphlet speeches against this revolution, the Tory government, led by W. Pitt Jr., decided to start a war against the state. Edmund Burke, whose quotes speak of his conservative positions, argued that a person can never be completely independent from society, he is somehow attached to it. He spoke of it this way: "Abstract freedom, like other abstractions, does not exist."
Thoughts on aesthetics
At the very beginning of his literary work (1757), he wrote a work entitled "Philosophical research on the origin of our ideas of the sublime and beautiful." In it, the scientist expressed a new idea for his time that a person's understanding of the aesthetic ideal depends not on the perceptions of works of art, but on the inner world and spiritual needs. This composition brought him fame and took an important place in a number of works on aesthetics. This work has been translated into Russian, which indicates its fame.
Worldview
Edmund Burke, whose philosophy was also largely determined by the ideas of conservatism, expressed a number of interesting ideas about history and social structure. For example, he believed that when carrying out reforms, it is necessary to take into account the specific experience gained by previous generations. He urged to be guided by concrete examples, but not abstract theories. In his opinion, this was the best way to transform the social structure. On this occasion, he belongs to the following statement: “Someone else’s example is the only school of mankind, a person never went to and will never go to another school.”
Traditional views
Edmund Burke considered the main value of the tradition, which he urged to preserve and respect, since they were developed by life itself and are based on the real needs and needs of people, rather than starting from speculative constructions. There is nothing worse, in his opinion, than to disrupt this natural course of development, which is set by history and life itself. From this perspective, he criticized the French events of his time in the famous essay Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790). He saw the death of revolution in that it destroyed the colossal spiritual experience accumulated by previous generations. He considered attempts to build a new society to be useless for civilization, since they bring only chaos and destruction.
Value
In the works and speeches of Burke, conservative ideas were first given the final ideological design. Therefore, it is considered to be the founder of classical conservatism. His philosophical views occupy a prominent place in the history of the development of socio-political thought, and vivid political speeches for the freedom of the North American colonies, against the abuse of English power in India, for freedom of the Catholic religion in Ireland made him one of the prominent representatives of his time. His views, however, cannot be called unambiguously conservative, since he often adhered to liberal ideas.