Compare and Contrast Modern Conservatism and Modern Liberalism

Modern liberalism and modern conservatism are both extremely centrist ideologies, “In fact, US conservatism comes out of classical liberalism so the modern versions of both ideologies share deep philosophical roots” (Guide, pg. 1). These roots date back to the 17th century, extending into the early 20th century. To fully understand American politics, it is a key to understand the dominant ideologies. It is also crucial to analyze the differences and similarities between these two ideologies. This paper will first examine the origins and tenants of classical liberalism, an ideology in which both modern liberalism and modern conservatism evolved. It will later discuss the …show more content…

2). Modern conservatism, on the other hand, came in to play when conservatives began to dislike government control in the economy. In opposition from modern liberalism, modern conservatism favored and “embraced laissez-faire (free-market) economics” (PowerPoints, Modern Conservatism, pg. 1). In Russell Kirk’s, “Ten Conservative Principles,” he claims conservatism is, “a state of mind, a type of character, a way of looking at the civil social order” (Guide, pg. 40). He first believes that for conservatives, there exists an everlasting moral order. He further states that there are two types of order, “the inner order of the soul and the outer order of the commonwealth” (Guide, pg. 41). Kirk has strong convictions that the 20th century world has suffered greatly due to a collapse of a belief in the moral order. Kirk further believes, “all social questions at heart, to be questions of private morality” (Guide, pg. 42). In addition, he believes that the conservative ideology is also strongly tied “to custom convention and continuity” (Guide, pg. 42). Conservatives believe