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The Conservative Tradition

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The Conservative Tradition

By: Patrick N. Allitt, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Patrick N. Allitt
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Summary

A thorough understanding of Conservatism's lineage, principles, and impact on history is essential to making sense of the 21st-century political dialogue-a dialogue that consumes the television you watch, the newspapers you read, and the radio you listen to.

No matter where you place yourself on the ideological spectrum, these 36 lectures will intrigue you, engage you, and maybe even provoke you to think about this political philosophy in an entirely new way.

In crafting his exploration of just why this has happened, Professor Allitt has specifically designed his lectures to be objective, neutral, and intellectually satisfying for every viewer and listener - whatever their ideological outlook. Using an easygoing and engaging style, these lectures show you how Anglo-American Conservatism developed and evolved in both Great Britain and the United States; how traditional Conservatism produced evolutionary variants like Neoconservatism and Libertarianism; and the provocative ways in which Conservatism has interacted with differing political philosophies. Following the fascinating history of Conservatism, you'll also meet the widest possible range of thinkers and practitioners behind the Conservative tradition, including John Stuart Mill, Ayn Rand, Francis Schaeffer, Adam Smith, Henry Adams, Alexander Hamilton, William Pitt the Younger, Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, H.L. Mencken, William F. Buckley Jr., Ludwig von Mises, and Friedrich von Hayek.Whether you consider yourself a Liberal or a Conservative-or something in between-these lectures can make you a more effective and informed citizen, armed with a sharpened understanding of the ways in which this philosophy has influenced events around the world.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2009 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2009 The Great Courses
Political Science Politics & Government
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This is now the second time that I have had to write about historians not using the correct terminology in the Great Courses series. On a number of occasions Patrick Allitt refers to England when he quite clearly means Great Britain or the United Kingdom. For those who are Welsh or Irish or Scots it is particularly annoying. At one point he even refers to the impact that Walter Scott had on England and does not even recognise the impact that he had on his own country. This very narrow english-centric view was also illustrated in a comment that he made at the end of the series on his own life experiences. He was born in 1956, I was born in 1955, so we are very much of the same age. He talked about a natural feeling of difference that people had in the United Kingdom to the monarchy and people in authority, and that he had never heard anyone question this. I grew up in Edinburgh, in a family that I would certainly not regard as radical in any way, but they certainly did not display deference to authority. Also, to me, his conservative leanings shone through.

Get your terminology correct

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If your interested in conservatism in the UK and USA and want something without opinion then this is well worth it

Fantastic listen and Unbiased

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Patrick N. Allitt's overview of conservative tendencies in politics makes for fascinating listening. Professor Allitt is forthright in stating that he takes no position on the views he presents; his aim is to deliver the course in a politically neutral manner. The course covers UK and US politics from Burke to Blair, examining all of the key talking points along the way. Professor Allitt is frank about the vagueness of political categories and the seeming contradiction of policies and figures who were viewed in their day as 'radical' but by later generations as 'conservative'. He deliberately ends the course in 2000 in order to avoid raising questions that could open up new avenues of controversy. The accompanying booklet gives a thorough synopsis of and reading list for each lesson. Highly recommended.

A thorough overview

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I bought this title hoping to understand the political philosophy of conservatives in the UK, and although the history of conservatism in the UK and the US is examined in detail in this course, I found the philosophical discussions of ideas and concepts to be lacking. Although the Prof. does take some lectures to entirely devote some time to discussion of specific debates and books written, it does get rather lost amidst a sea of 'he said, she said' discussions of who was on who's team at what point.

If you want to know who were the main proponents of a kind of conservatism, and what specific conservative leaders believed then this is a good listen. If you want to understand the philosophical underpinnings of any kind of conservatism, I would go elsewhere.

A History of Conservatism

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This is a well balanced history of conservatism. Prof Allitt accent (Midlands I think) makes for an engaging listening.

Very interesting and well balanced lecture

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