European Conservatism as a Present Political Ideology

• Author: Ionut Stefan, Sergiu Pirju
• Pages: 686-697

Globalization and Cultural Diversity

686

European Conservatism as a Present Political Ideology

Ionuţ Ştefan1, Sergiu Pîrju2

Abstract: The histo rical beginnings of conservative ideology were felt during the Revolution in France and

the next decades that followed this event reference of modernity. The conservative thinking has evolved in

the nineteenth century and in the early part of the twentieth century, it has experienced major changes in

civilization and has known phenomena of crisis, identity and solutions, crisis that has exceeded it during the

second of the last century, when it was restructured as neo-conservatism. Without having a single and

concrete definition, conservatism has always represented all those who declare themselves political partisans

to any social system, is concerned to ensure the continuity of social and political o rder, historically

legitimated and strive to reject revolutions that would, inevitably, change it. The conservatism peculiarity was

highlighted by rejecting the ideological organization o f any systematization form of its ideas, because society

can b e organized by appealing to programs and theories. Conservatism is the political and social doctrine

which rend ers the system a conservative spirit, focused on the ideal of social order and stability. Modern

conservatism, located at the right of lib eralism, was and shall remain the doctrinal and ideological opponent

of all systems of ideas th at are situated on the scale policy guidelines on its left. While tradition is

indispensable for the existence of conservatism, it was forced to adapt to modern requirements and to

modernize itself over time, maintaining however the main features that characterizes it.

Keywords: conservatism; political doctrine; European construction; tradition

1. The Definition of Conservatism

  

 -century French

vocabulary and then in the Romanian one, known because penetrates in Romanian through the French

branch.3 The conservatism is considered both a political vision as well as a way of being, an ideology



is not intended as denial, but the af4 .Thus the conservatism is

one of three significant political ideologies in the last two centuries Occident, along with liberalism

and socialism.   = image and

       The ideology is a wealth of

1   y of Galati, Facult y of Communication and International Relation s, Address:

Galati, 3 Galati Boulevard, 800654 Galati, Romania, Tel.: +40.372.361.102, fax: +40.372.361.290, E-mail:

ionut.stefan@univ-danubius.ro.

2   y of Galati, Facult y of Communication and International Relation s, Address:

Galati, 3 Galati Boulevard, 800654 Galati, Romania, Tel.: +40.372.361.102, fax: +40.372.361.290, Corresponding author:

pirjusergiu@univ-danubius.ro.

3http://filosofiepolitica.wordpress.com/elemente-de-doctrina/partidul-conservator/istoria-partidului-conservator/.

4http://facultate.regielive.ro/cursuri/stiinte-politice/conservatorismul-istorie-universala-1952.html.