BookAges 16–18
Reflections on the Revolution in France
Edmund Burke · 1790
ProtestantBritish
The founding text of modern conservatism. Read in selections if needed; the prose is dense but extraordinary.
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Related quotes from the canon
“A spirit of innovation is generally the result of a selfish temper and confined views. People will not look forward to posterity, who never look backward to their ancestors.”
— Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France, 1790
“To be attached to the subdivision, to love the little platoon we belong to in society, is the first principle (the germ as it were) of public affections.”
— Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France, 1790