On Principles and Values: Mining for Conservative Rhetoric in the London Times, 1785–2010

Abstract

This article explores the nature of conservative rhetoric in the London-based Times between 1785 and 2010. What kind of language did writers in this newspaper consciously use to express a moral opinion that might be qualified as “conservative”? Such moral languages can be traced over time by examining commonly used word clusters, which in turn reflect ideas—in this case, “conservative” ideas. Word clusters can be highly iterative and often limited in size, which make them ideal for a computer-assisted analysis over a longer period of time. Methodologically, the article employs two proven, easy-to-use text mining techniques: n-grams (especially bigrams) and word embeddings. It traces a number of bigram phrases over the whole period, the most important of which are “conservative principles,” “conservative values,” “traditional values,” and “permissive society.” The term “conservative principles” figured as a moral and political expression especially in the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth century. Major changes in conservative rhetoric occurred mainly during and after the 1960s. New terms began to be used to denote moral positions, especially after the emergence of the so-called permissive society. At the same time, however, it became increasingly difficult to identify a specifically conservative rhetoric. First, the tensions between tradition and modernity, which conservatives were bound to address, was part of a much larger public debate. Second, all moral languages became “moralised,” as it were: great store began to be put by words such as “values” and “tradition.” The result was a confluence of left and right-wing rhetoric, and the concomitant submergence of ideological differences.