Classical Liberalism Vs. Classical Conservatism

Classical Liberalism vs. Classical Conservatism

In today's society, most people are unable to explain the differences between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. In fact, the two parties' ideologies seem to be very much alike; and therefore, people tend to believe that a Republican candidate and a Democratic candidate running for the same office will not make a large difference from one another. Furthermore, both Democrats, the supposedly liberal party, and Republicans, the supposedly conservative party, have been appointed to the highest office, the President of the United States of America. In most cases, the President has been effective in building notable progress in our nation's growth, regardless of the political party that they belong to. Hence, most people believe that the two parties are similar enough that they are practically the same. Upon closer examination into the history of the Democratic and the Republican parties, we are able to determine that the political philosophies from which they originate have completely opposing ideologies.

The ideologies of the Democratic Party originate from the principles of the classical liberalism philosophy. The most dominant idea of classical liberalism is that the government's role is to protect the individual's natural rights because individuals are the primary unit of society (Franks 27). According to John Locke, a philosopher who contributed to classical liberalism's vitality, the protection of individuals' "life, liberty, and property" is their natural rights (Jones 227). The ideas of classical liberalism revolves so much around the individual that Locke believes the people had the right to combine into a revolutionary force and organize a new form of gover...

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...he Bill of Rights has consistently reflected ideologies of both classical liberalism and classical conservatism. These ideas are compromised and form our government while maintaining a sense of democracy, although the idea of a complete democracy has yet to be satisfied. The co-existence of the contrasting ideologies of classical liberalism and classical conservatism, or the Democratic and Republic parties, in our government have shown that together they create a form of democracy that assures popular sovereignty to the people through the representation of political leaders while conserving established traditional values.

Works Cited

"Franks, Joel S. Asian Pacific Americans and the United States: Volume I. San Francisco: Mcgraw-Hill, 2001.

"Jones, Jacqueline. Created Equal: A Social and Political History of the United States. New York: Pearson Longman, 2003.