美国保守主义的内涵与风格

Connotation and Style of American Conservatism

以自由主义著称的美国有着保守主义的一面。美国保守主义具有内涵与风格两种含义:不同阶段的政治经济体制与社会文化机制具有深层的内在一致性,这种具有确定性内容的、持久稳定的体制根基即保守主义的"内涵";各阶段的制度调整与规范变迁是渐进的,修正形态从未超越体制根基所设定的底线,这种社会发展的渐进性、连续性就是保守主义的"风格"。保守主义的风格由保守主义的内涵所成就,是制度理性发育成熟的结果,其条件是:制度根基本身承载着现代的生产方式,具有容纳异端的空间和自我改造的能力,能够自我更新,并与外部环境的大趋势保持一致。

The United States, which is well- known for liberalism, also has its conservative side.American conservatism has two implications on both connotation and style： there is deep internal consistency between the political and economic system and the social and cultural mechanisms at different stages, and this long-lasting stable institutional foundation constitutes the connotation of conservatism; institutional adjustment and moral transition of each stage is a gradual progress, and revisionism never goes beyond the bottom line of institutional foundation, thus this gradualness and continuity of social development constitutes the style of conservatism. The style of conservatism depends on its connotation, and it is also the result of the maturity of institutional rationality with the proviso that the institutional foundation itself carries the modern mode of production, and possesses the ability of inclusiveness, self transformation and self-improvement, and consistent with the trend of the external environment.