Edmund Burke's Philosophical Theory

In the History of Psychology Philosophy, that discipline from which it emerged in the 19th century, has always had a great influence. The way in which the human being is usually understood and the personal relationships that he establishes, for example, depends on intuitive, pre-scientific perspectives, which have been influenced by the leading thinkers of West.

Philosopher Edmund Burke was one of these people, and his conservative approach to analyzing the logic by which society operates is still valid today. Next we will see what the philosophical theory of Edmund Burke consisted of and what implications it has.

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Who was Edmund Burke?

Edmund Burke was born in Dublin in 1729, during the Enlightenment. From his youth he understood that philosophy had a spatial relevance to politics, as it helped to understand how to consider abstract issues. that were manifested through the crowds and, in addition, established moral indications to follow, which allow proposing systems of order Social.

The above he led him to participate in the English parliament between the years 1766 and 1794. In this period he defended the right of the English colonies to become independent, and in fact he positioned himself against the occupation of North America. Economically, as we will see, he was a radical defender of the free market.

Edmund Burke's theory

The main aspects of Edmund Burke's philosophical theory, as regards human behavior and social phenomena, are as follows.

1. The noble component of society

Burke understood that human society does not only exist to enable individuals to exchange goods and services, as it might seem from a materialistic point of view. For this philosopher there is something else that gives value beyond the simple observable exchange through payment and joint surveillance of a common space.

This "extra" is virtue, the arts and sciences, which are products of society. It is a component that ennobles human beings and, according to Burke, distinguishes them from animals.

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2. The idea of ​​the contract

Through this double exchange, both material and spiritual, human beings establish a social contract, a series of negotiated conventions as long as civilization is maintained and produces its fruits for the greatest number of people to enjoy.

3. Civilization has deep roots

This virtuous component that human beings obtain through mutual support does not exist for its own sake. It has its origin in tradition, in the way in which each culture remains faithful to its customs, their past and the way they honor their ancestors. Relying on the cultural contributions that we inherited from previous generations is something that allows us to progress, therefore, according to this thinker.

This way of understanding society does not keep it separate from its origin, but rather understands it as a living being that develops and matures.

4. Individual guilt

At the same time, Edmund Burke emphasized another element that, for him, was inherited: Christian original sin. He was thus opposed to the idea that society can approach immoral acts or approach them through progress: guilt exists independently of the actions. educational influences of the society in which we live and, in any case, the company of others helps us to manage it thanks to the fact that in community the flame of the religion.

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5. Opposition to revolutions

As usual, Edmund Burke was opposed to revolutions, paradigm shifts in a society. This is so because he understood that each culture must develop at its “natural” pace (remember the analogy with the living being). Revolutions, by their very definition, involve questioning many ideas rooted in the past and customs that have shaped civil and political life, and consequently are, for him, an imposition artificial.

6. Defense of the free market

While in the social sphere, Edmund Burke encouraged the active defense of the most traditional values ​​and customs. Beyond any debate about its usefulness in specific situations, economically he was opposed to a control socialized. That is he defended the free movement of capital. The reason is that this was a way of reaffirming the importance of private property, which, in the line of other philosophers of the time, considered an extension of the body itself.

Definitely

Edmund Burke believed that the human being can only be understood by taking into account the inclusion of him in a social network of habits, beliefs and customs with a strong roots in what the ancestors.

In this way he emphasized the importance of the social and, at the same time, could establish a distinction between the cultural and economic spheres, in which the logic of property predominated private.