The Great Debate: Edmund Burke, Thomas Paine, and the Birth of Right and Left

Description

Focuses on the late 18th century debate between two legendary thinkers Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine for the roots of America s contemporary political divide This title is suitable for those seeking to understand not only the foundations of our political order but the controversies that fuel Washington s divisiveness For more than two centuries our political life has been divided between a party of progress and a party of conservation In The Great Debate Yuval Levin explores the origins of the left right divide by examining the views of the men who best represented each side of that debate at its outset Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine In a groundbreaking exploration of the roots of our political order Levin shows that American partisanship originated in the debates over the French Revolution fueled by the fiery rhetoric of these ideological titans Levin masterfully shows how Burke s and Paine s differing views a reforming conservatism and a restoring progressivism continue to shape our current political discourse on issues ranging from abortion to welfare education economics and beyond Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand Washington s often acrimonious rifts The Great Debate offers a profound examination of what conservatism liberalism and the debate between them truly amount to