My Ideology
Ashesi University College
PMB CT 3
Cantonments
Accra, Ghana
15th May, 2013
Hello “Professor” David, You might be wondering how you came across this letter. Do not worry. I will explain to you later. Do you recall ever wanting to be a professor? I honestly cannot imagine you to be conferred the title of professorship. In fact, the old you was never a fan of school. Do you remember how you hated writing essays and how you would spend weeks on your final papers because essays were your prime weakness? Maybe something about you might have changed along the line. Could it have been a woman? Anyway, about thirty years ago, you (my present self) took up a course called Social Theory, which introduced you to a number of political ideologies. The main point of this letter is to describe which of these political ideologies is closest to my present political beliefs and the concepts, which encompass it. Besides, I am sure it is these same concepts that have shaped your life today. You should be grateful to Mrs. Kajsa Adu, the lecturer who introduced you to these very political ideologies. To begin with, I believe that of all the ideologies I have studied, conservatism is closest to my political beliefs. Let me just give you an overview of the whole idea of conservatism and introduce you to the new right. “Conservatism as a political ideology is defined by the desire to conserve, reflected in a resistance to, or at least a suspicion of change.” (Heywood, 2012, p. 65). You in particular, can easily attest to the fact that I do not really like change. Remember your own (my present) favourite saying: ‘Just go with the system.’ Just like conservatives, I prefer going with things that have been “tried and tested”. In other words, I like to do things that I am familiar with. Besides, others have used them time and time again and have not failed. Though the aspiration to resist change is the main theme of conservatism, it has other
PMB CT 3
Cantonments
Accra, Ghana
15th May, 2013
Hello “Professor” David, You might be wondering how you came across this letter. Do not worry. I will explain to you later. Do you recall ever wanting to be a professor? I honestly cannot imagine you to be conferred the title of professorship. In fact, the old you was never a fan of school. Do you remember how you hated writing essays and how you would spend weeks on your final papers because essays were your prime weakness? Maybe something about you might have changed along the line. Could it have been a woman? Anyway, about thirty years ago, you (my present self) took up a course called Social Theory, which introduced you to a number of political ideologies. The main point of this letter is to describe which of these political ideologies is closest to my present political beliefs and the concepts, which encompass it. Besides, I am sure it is these same concepts that have shaped your life today. You should be grateful to Mrs. Kajsa Adu, the lecturer who introduced you to these very political ideologies. To begin with, I believe that of all the ideologies I have studied, conservatism is closest to my political beliefs. Let me just give you an overview of the whole idea of conservatism and introduce you to the new right. “Conservatism as a political ideology is defined by the desire to conserve, reflected in a resistance to, or at least a suspicion of change.” (Heywood, 2012, p. 65). You in particular, can easily attest to the fact that I do not really like change. Remember your own (my present) favourite saying: ‘Just go with the system.’ Just like conservatives, I prefer going with things that have been “tried and tested”. In other words, I like to do things that I am familiar with. Besides, others have used them time and time again and have not failed. Though the aspiration to resist change is the main theme of conservatism, it has other
Cited: Burke, E. (1909-14). Reflections on the Revolution in France (Vol. 24). New York, New York, United States of America: P.F. Collier and & Son. Heywood, A. (2012). Political Ideologies (Vol. 5). New York, New York, United States of America: PALGRAVE MACMILLAN. Smith, A. (1904-14). An Inguiry into the nature and causes of the Wealth of Nations (Vol. 10). (C. Bullock, Ed.) New York, United States of America: P.F. Collier & Son.