Conservationism

Question 1

4

Thomas Hobbes (traditional conservative)

Answer 1

• humans exhibit a “a restless desire” for power = leads to conflict and turning the state of nature into a “war of every man against every man”
• absolute government at the consent of the people; sacrifice many freedoms for safety (entering a social contract which surrenders all natural rights minus self-defence to whom they grant authority)

negative view of human nature = humans are inherently violent/destructive and power hungry; must be kept in line by a higher authority

in the state of nature, life of a man would become “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short”

Question 2

4

Edmund Burke (traditional conservative)

Answer 2

tradition is needed to promote social solidarity and continuity = history roots/ties people in society

the human need for security is met by society’s institutions; provide identity and social cohesion
society resembles a living organism = all areas work together and can be gradually/gently changed to adapt to new circumstances

reform should be limited and cautious; take accounts of the past and based on empiricism and tradition

‘Society more akin to a plan than a machine’ (theory of organicism)

Question 3

6

Micheal Oakeshott (one nation)

Answer 3

“to be a conservative is to prefer the tried over the untried”

humans are imperfect “but not immoral”; “fallible but not terrible”

parliamentary institutions have developed pragmatically (practical demands of governing)
political thinking and action should be guided by pragmatism and practical experience; ensures public acceptance and maintains social cohesion and stability

the state existed to “prevent the bad rather than create the good”

rational attempts to make sense of society’s behaviour will inevitably distort/simplify that facts; due to human imperfection

Oakeshott’s critics, especially the new right, claim his philosophy is too fatalistic and underestimates our ability to shape
circumstances. For new right philosophers the ‘Oakeshott mentality’ was ‘lazy’ and had allowed socialism ideas to advance unchallenged after 1945.

Question 4

4

Ayn Rand (new right)

Answer 4

“the small state is the strong state”

the pursuit of rational self-interest is morally right; based on the “virtue of selfishness”

rejects welfare/wealth redistribution = relies on implicit threat of taxation (opposition to this is known as the nonaggression principle)

condemned personal altruism = acts created an artificial sense of obligation and expectation
supports a pure, laissez-faire capitalist economy; claimed it offered a set of principles covering all aspects of human life

Question 5

5

Robert Nozick (new right)

Answer 5

“tax, for the most part, is theft”

humans are rational, self-aware beings with free; shouldn’t be treated as mere thins or used against their will as resources

self-ownership is based on the ideas that individuals own themselves, their bodies, talents, abilities and labour

only a minimal state can be justified = taxes levied for state welfare are immoral as they treat the individuals as a means of resource rather than an end in themselves

The only state that can be justified is one where powers of the state are limited to those necessary = protects people against violence, theft, fraud etc.