'Durumsal Muhafazakarlık' Anlayışı Üzerine Teorik & Eleştirel Bir Değerlendirme
A Theoretical & Critical Analysis on the Concept of ‘Situational Conservatism’

Summary/Abstract: This study focuses on the discussion of ‘conservatism’. Important theoretical discussions have been made within the framework of what it means as a concept and how it should be defined. The concept of conservatism is reconstructed from different perspectives and is interpreted in different contexts based on different theoretical viewpoints and gains functionality. These different perspectives naturally may lead to separate consequences at the social and political levels. At this point, we come across different concepts used to define conservatism: Darwinian/Evolutionary conservatism, metaphysical conservatism, historical/peculiar conservatism, conservatism as a doctrine of tradition(alism), universal conservatism, situational conservatism, etc. In this study, previously mentioned different conceptualizations of conservatism will be examined with a critical perspective and especially analyze/criticism of ‘situational conservatism’ will be made. According to our main argument of this study, in order to accept conservatism as an ideology separate and detached from liberalism or socialism, we need a perspective that goes beyond the concept of ‘situational conservatism’. If we stay within the boundaries of situational understanding, conservatism will be very pragmatic notion without any essence or fixed principles and will be able to integrate with any kind of ideological position.

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