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Michael Oakeshott And Edmund Burke On Conservatism

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Michael Oakeshott and Edmund Burke have very similar views on Conservatism, yet they both use different styles of writing and fundamental reasoning to justify their views. Though Burke expressed his views on Conservatism in 1790 and Oakeshott wrote in 1962, 172 years later, the two men have astonishingly similar explanations of Conservatism. They share similar thoughts on conservative themes such as gradual change, the embrace of familiarity, and agree upon their distaste for rationalism. Though the two authors have slightly contrasting reasons for their beliefs and ways of writing about them, the assumptions they make regarding conservatism are notably alike despite the substantial time gap between them. Oakeshott clearly expresses his views on Conservatism as more of a disposition, “a person's inherent qualities of mind and character”, while Burke’s seems to express Conservatism as an ideology, “a system of ideas and …show more content…

He writes with a formal tone in order to seem more analytical to the reader, and begins his essay with a thesis that states what it means “to be conservative”. Burke’s writing is slightly less formal, and is written in the form of a letter to the reader, making him seem more relatable. The informal tone of his essay helps create the perception that he is like the “common man”, therefore his political beliefs would be better suited for the public. Though they are from two very different time periods, both authors have very similar political beliefs and effectively express the fundamentals of conservative thinking. Though the writers have different ways of expressing their beliefs and the ideas vary slightly from one another, the general concepts are repeated between the two essays. Oakeshott and Burke are two extremely important examples of the conservative philosophy and their writing helps the reader to develop a greater understanding of the political

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