“Abstract ideas like equality and liberty have a spurious transparency, and can be used to derive pleasing theorems in the manner of Jean-Jacques Rousseau or John Rawls.”

English philosopher, writer, and social critic

Sir Roger Vernon Scruton was an English philosopher, writer, and social critic. He is known for work on aesthetics and political philosophy, and for presenting conservative views in those fields. He founded The Salisbury Review, a conservative political journal, and wrote more than 50 books on architecture, art, philosophy, politics, religion, and related subjects. He also chaired the United Kingdom government’s Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission from 2019 to 2020. His ideas on classical architecture and beauty continue through his foundation, and his political thought remains influential.