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Sometimes (no pun intended) people will make an argument about merit based on how old or new something is.
The first version of this trope is appeal to tradition (ATT) which states that merit can be found in how old it is or because it's been done for a long time. A common version from the new age movement can be seen in traditional medicines. This variant is also very common amongst conservatives. The idea behind this is that we've already tried everything else a long time ago, so the ancient practices we're left with survived because they work best.
However, this trope isn't always true for two reasons:
1. A tradition may not have survived just because it was better.
2. The circumstances we are in now do not necessarily reflect those when the traditions first became mainstream.
Appeal to tradition could easily apply to monarchism and slavery. Since the enlightement, we've been in an era of improvement, both socially and economically. Thus, we shouldn't look to the past for moral guidance.
Speaking of which...
The other variant is called appeal to novelty (ATN). This is basically the opposite of appeal tradition since it bases merit on how new it is. While ATT may harken back to the good old days, ATN will offhandedly dismiss it as the old way of doing things. In the age of progress, it's assumed that newer things will be better. When taken to its logical conclusion, you get whig history, the idea that history is a story of progression from a gritty past to a glorious future.
Products are often pitched as being newer as if it meant tht they were also better. However, they may also be more expensive. Or the product is missing something like a phone jack. Public transit is sometimes derited as old fashioned since it was popular before cars became mainstream. The dot com bubble occurred as a retult of investors throwing caution to the window, investing in something just because it was related to tech.
The first version of this trope is appeal to tradition (ATT) which states that merit can be found in how old it is or because it's been done for a long time. A common version from the new age movement can be seen in traditional medicines. This variant is also very common amongst conservatives. The idea behind this is that we've already tried everything else a long time ago, so the ancient practices we're left with survived because they work best.
However, this trope isn't always true for two reasons:
1. A tradition may not have survived just because it was better.
2. The circumstances we are in now do not necessarily reflect those when the traditions first became mainstream.
Appeal to tradition could easily apply to monarchism and slavery. Since the enlightement, we've been in an era of improvement, both socially and economically. Thus, we shouldn't look to the past for moral guidance.
Speaking of which...
The other variant is called appeal to novelty (ATN). This is basically the opposite of appeal tradition since it bases merit on how new it is. While ATT may harken back to the good old days, ATN will offhandedly dismiss it as the old way of doing things. In the age of progress, it's assumed that newer things will be better. When taken to its logical conclusion, you get whig history, the idea that history is a story of progression from a gritty past to a glorious future.
Products are often pitched as being newer as if it meant tht they were also better. However, they may also be more expensive. Or the product is missing something like a phone jack. Public transit is sometimes derited as old fashioned since it was popular before cars became mainstream. The dot com bubble occurred as a retult of investors throwing caution to the window, investing in something just because it was related to tech.