THE OPPOSITE OF LIBERALISM IS CONSERVATISM?

Conservatism is not the opposite of liberalism but its adversary.

What is conservatism, and where does it come from?

We publish a summary from a "neutral" "expert," i.e., a researcher:

Excerpts from Marianne Sandelin's article (published on March 23, 2022) on the filosofia.fi website.

"For conservatives, political rationalism, idealism, belief in progress, and an optimistic view of human potential have often signified a naive, dangerous, and utopian detachment from the realities of the real world.

In turn, conservatives have accused the political heirs of the Enlightenment, liberalism and socialism, of radicalism and ideology.Conservatism, alongside liberalism and socialism, is one of the most central ideological movements in European political thought.

Although historical contexts have varied, both early and more modern branches of conservatism have been characterized by suspicion or even hostility toward the core assumptions of the Enlightenment and liberal ideals.

Conservatism emerged as its own ideological tradition in response to the French Revolution (1789), to which it was, in many ways, a counter-reaction. Like many other ideologies, the term 'conservatism' only came into use later, after the ideology had already been formed.

Conservatism was, from the outset, a political movement.

Conservatives who opposed the French Revolution believed that, in order to reverse its destructive consequences, they needed to attack the very mindset that had given rise to it in the first place.

As a result, the primary target of attack became the Enlightenment. In fighting against the reforms of 1789, conservatives opposed not only the key tenets of the revolution but also created a counter-logic to Enlightenment thinking based on natural rights.

Conservatives saw the French Revolution, its later reign of terror (1793–1794), and the ensuing bloodshed as a direct result of the ideals of Enlightenment philosophy.

Across Europe, the conservative upper class increasingly believed that the Enlightenment, equality, democracy, cosmopolitan ideals, and natural rights were inextricably linked to the destructiveness of the revolution. They emphasized the importance of traditions, authority, hierarchies, and religion in restoring order.

The traditionalist attitude and conservatism as a political ideology are closely connected, and a cautious approach to change is undoubtedly a central theme in conservatism. However, political conservatism requires more than just traditionalism and opposition to change (see Mannheim 1986, 83–88; Freeden 1996, 332; Müller 2006, 359).

The relationship between conservatism and reactionism can also be said to be complex.

A reactionary is someone who seeks to reverse already enacted societal reforms, whereas conservatism has often been strongly associated with support for the existing state of affairs, or the status quo, and the preference for cautious, 'organic' change.

Instead of belief in progress, freedom, and democracy, conservatives have traditionally argued that history shows that power naturally accumulates at the top, authorities are strong, and hierarchies are clear.

Rather than universal humanity, social equality, and shared interests, they have believed that diversity, inequality, and conflicting interests are natural to people and nations. Because people are not the same, they are not equal. Instead of focusing on natural rights, conservatives have emphasized duties, responsibility, and obedience.

Rather than harmony, dialogue, and deliberation, conservatives have stressed the necessity of conflict, opposition, suffering, and war.

Contrary to popular belief, economic policy has not traditionally been the defining factor of conservatism. In fact, attitudes toward an unrestricted, profit-driven economy have significantly divided conservatives.

For British and American conservatism, the ethos of commerce, economic liberalization, and capitalism was common from the beginning, while early continental European conservatives—such as French Catholic conservatives and German romantic conservatives—were skeptical of unregulated self-interest and capitalism.

Radical conservatives, on the other hand, have often supported at least some level of protectionism for nationalist reasons, advocating for the protection and favoring of domestic production by restricting foreign competition.

In the industrial, market-dominated world after the Industrial Revolution, most conservatives have adopted similar views on capitalism, economic regulation, or deregulation as the market-liberal bourgeois right.

Conservatism places an emphasis on a negative view of ideology. Conservatives see ideology as a distorted consciousness of reality - something that disturbs and clouds a person's ability to understand the nature of reality and 'realities.'

Unlike liberalism and socialism, conservatism has not always been seen as a philosophically developed ideology but rather as a practical reaction to the ideologies and their concrete manifestations, such as the French or Russian revolutions.

This view has been particularly emphasized by conservatives themselves.

According to them, conservatism is not an ideology but a way of thinking that stems from opposition to ideological radicalism and political rationalism.

Since traditionally, conservatism has been written about primarily by conservatives who think this way, this view has become quite common.

In general terms, conservatism can be divided into three branches: so-called traditional conservatism, bourgeois liberal conservatism, and illiberal radical conservatism."