18 h 12 minAudiobook13 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 18 h 12 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What does a leader owe the people: obedience to their wishes, or the courage to judge for himself?
In Selections from the Speeches and Writings of Edmund Burke, public argument carries real stakes. Burke addresses Bristol’s voters, challenges Britain’s approach to taxing the American colonies, and confronts abuses of power in India. His words seek to change votes and steady opinion, while asking what responsible government owes the people it rules.
The selection explores shared political principles through Thoughts on the Present Discontents and cautious reform through Reflections on the Revolution in France. Alongside the Bristol address and speeches on American taxation and conciliation, these writings reveal a mind weighing judgment, power, and inherited habits. Burke asks not only what governments can do, but what wisdom should lead them to do.
What you’ll discover
- Judgment before obedience Explore Burke’s case that a representative serves voters through independent judgment, not simple agreement.
- Principles that bind Consider political parties as bonds of shared principle rather than mere tools of influence.
- Wisdom amid resistance Follow arguments about America that place practical wisdom against the assertion of abstract rights.
- Power held to account Face the question of how rulers should answer for their treatment of distant populations.
- Reform with care Weigh Burke’s view of society as an inheritance, and consider the limits of his arguments.
Who will love it
This book suits readers who enjoy political argument at its most eloquent, students of the American and French revolutions, and anyone curious about conservatism and empire.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- The Commons should mirror the nation's feelings
- Words move us by feeling, not by pictures
- Honest party connection is a public duty
- Read the people's mood before blaming them
- Conciliation with America needs freedom, not force
- A representative owes judgment, not obedience
- Reform should come early, gradually and with care
- Power over distant peoples is a trust
- Liberty is an inheritance, not a theory
- Against revolution, and what lasted
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Selecciones de los discursos y escritos de Edmund Burke
by Edmund Burke
A statesman tells his voters that he owes them his judgment, and that obeying their every wish would betray them.
Challenging10–20 hours to readEspañol
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In short
What should a lawmaker do when the crowd wants one thing and his own judgment says another? Edmund Burke faced that question in an election hall in Bristol.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
The Commons should mirror the nation's feelings
Burke opens with a claim about what the House of Commons is for. It is not enough that the House draws its power from the people. The king, the lords and the judges are all trustees for the people too.
What sets the Commons apart is that it is meant to be a true image of the nation's feelings. Other institutions exist to check popular excess. The Commons was built to act as a control on the people's behalf.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 13 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- Language
- Español
- Reading time
- 11 h 50 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Burke, Edmund. Selections from the Speeches and Writings of Edmund Burke. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/selections-from-the-speeches-and-writings-of-edmund-burke.
Burke, E. (2026). Selections from the speeches and writings of Edmund Burke. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/selections-from-the-speeches-and-writings-of-edmund-burke
Burke, Edmund. Selections from the Speeches and Writings of Edmund Burke. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/selections-from-the-speeches-and-writings-of-edmund-burke.
@book{burke2026selections,
author = {Burke, Edmund},
title = {Selections from the Speeches and Writings of Edmund Burke},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/selections-from-the-speeches-and-writings-of-edmund-burke}
}
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What is Selections from the Speeches and Writings of Edmund Burke about?
It gathers passages from Burke's speeches, pamphlets, essays and histories. They cover representation, party, the American colonies, India, reform, trade and the French Revolution, along with his early thoughts on beauty and the sublime.
What does Burke mean by saying a representative owes judgment, not just work?
In his Bristol speech he says a parliamentary representative must serve his constituents faithfully but may not surrender his own considered judgment to their opinions. He sees that judgment as a trust from Providence.
What is Burke's main view of the French Revolution?
He argues that it tore down a working state in the name of abstract rights. He contrasts it with the English Revolution of 1688, which kept the old constitution and repaired it, and he warns of its spread.
The author
Edmund Burke
1729–1797 · Anglo-Irish political philosopher and statesman
Edmund Burke was born in Dublin in 1729 and died in Beaconsfield, England, in 1797. He moved to London in 1750 and served in the British Parliament from 1765 to 1794. He delivered his speech on conciliation with America in 1775 and published Reflections on the Revolution in France in 1790.
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