Reflections on the Revolution in France

This reading was challenging for me. It got kind of overwhelming, so it was hard to concentrate on everything that Burke was saying. In the description on webCT, it helped to read over the point of view that Burke was representing. He was an advocate for conservatism, and in this essay his points of view on the topic are expressed. Burke mentions that one of the most "leading principles" within a commonwealth should be that people respect the establishment. He goes on to say that if the generation now does not respect and adhere to the principles that have been built up through history, it isn't fair to future generations to tear down the works and "institutions of their forefathers." By having such inconsistency in the commonwealth, or state, it would be impossible to pass down any sort of sense of law to the next generation. We wouldn't be building up anything anymore, simply tearing it down and leaving the remains for the upcoming people to deal with it. Burke says, "The whole chain and continuity of the commonwealth would be broken. No one generation could link with the other. Men would become little better than the flies of a summer." To an extent, I think that's true. If we have little government interference, there is the possibility that people will abuse that power (and they always do) and when things get out of hand, whose going to put everything back into control?

Burke is really against barbaric acts, possibly instilled by a lack of government influence. When individuality is present, it could lead to the breakdown and "crumbling" of once again, the future generations. He mentions a "partnership" and how that should be established with a government and the people. If that partnership isn't present with a higher power, the only thing that is left is realtions among living people. The social contract with the state should be regarded highly, for it helps with the existence of the people of the day. If people don't abide by the law, society will be broken down in chaos, "madness" and "discord". After understanding his essay a little better, I think he makes some good points about having something ready for future generations. No one really put in any effort for causes like global warming in the past, and look where we are now, scrambling around to figure out how to fix our mistakes that could have been lessened years ago. It seems the relation between the present and future generations is a stable topic throughout the essay, and definitely applies to other issues of even today.