Conservatism

Question 1

Four Key Themes

Answer 1

1) Human nature
2) Society
3) The state
4) The economy

Question 2

Conservatism - Groupings

Answer 2

1. Traditional conservatives
2. One Nation Conservatism
3. Christian Democrats
4. New Right
   
   1. Neo-liberals
   2. Neo-conservatives

Question 3

Human Nature card 1 - “Philosophy of human imperfection”

Answer 3

Noel O’Sullivan - “a philosophy of human imperfection”

• *1) Morally imperfect** - humans inherently selfish, driven by base ideas - link to original sin in the bible
• *2) Intellectually imperfect** - reality beyond rational understanding
• *3) Psychologically imperfect** - rely on tradition and culture for identity and rootedness

Question 4

Human Nature - Card 2

Neo-conservatives and neo-liberals

Answer 4

Neo-cons -

1. Agree with Hobbes that humans innately impefect and cannot be transformed
2. Therefore strong law and order to deter criminal behaviour
3. foreign policy based on security rather than liberal notion of coorperation

Neo liberals

1. Humans capable of rational thought
2. therefore no need for organic society which contrains individual freedom - society is atomistic
3. egotistical individualism where individual rights more important than obligations to state
4. Freedom = self-interest and self-reliance
5. Negative freedom - freedom from external constraints

Question 5

Human Nature card 2 - Hobbes

Wrote “Leviathan”

Answer 5

1) humans needy, vulnerable and easily led astray as they try to understand the world
2) drives are individualistic not communal
3) Therefore need government and structure of society to prevent “a state of war” where life would be “nasty, brutish and short”
4) So need social compact to achieve order
5) Social compact gives legitimacy to sovereign to pass legislation as they see fit
6) Individuals cede freedom in exchange for legal and physical protection via rule of law

7) Therfore balance order against need human need for a free life to get equilibrium

Question 6

Society - Traditional Conservatism

Card 1

Answer 6

1. Traditionally believe in a hierarchical society -stable, interlinked communities, natural - position not linked to ability
2. Durkeheim - if isolated from society, suffer anomie (isolation and sense of meaniglessness)
3. Property rights provide stability and structure - inheritance links past, present, future
4. Cannot be contirved or created, emerge organically
5. Oakeshott - therefore prefer status quo and traditions, but will “change to conserve” as Burke argued
6. Radical change should be avoided and rationalism not trusted (e.g. rationalism led to communism, fascism)

Question 7

Society Card 2 - Change in Society - Traditional Conservatism

Answer 7

1. Careful not radical change, guided by
   
   1. tradition,
   2. pragmatism,
   3. empiricism
   4. hierarchy
   5. Judeaeo-Christian morality
2. Burke - “change to conserve itself”
3. Paternalistic responsibility - “noblesse oblige” to weaker elements of society to maintain equilibrium

Question 8

Society card 3 - Edmund Burke

Answer 8

1. Tradition and empiricism should be passed down through generations for a healthy, functioning society
2. “Conserve to change” - circumstances mean need small modifications to prevent rebellion/revolution
   
   1. French revolution was because corrupt aristocracy failed in its “noblesse oblige” therefore failed to change
   2. Aristocracy was devoted to Hobbesian autocracy
   3. “a state without the means of some change is without a means of its conservation”
   4. American revolution - supported because legitimate grievances but did not abandon values, culture, institutions, traditions
3. Attack “philosophical abstractions” of Paine (Rights of Man) and Rousseau
   4.

Question 9

The State (Card 1)

Answer 9

1. Most branches except liberal New Right believe
   
   1. Society is not equal - natural hierarchy
   2. Controlled by a ruling class with paternalistic responisbility (nobelesse oblige) to weaker elements to maintain equilibrium (like parents with children)
   3. Adheres to Judaeo-Christian morality
   4. Pragmatic - society will collapse if don’t
   5. Burke - “change to conserve” to react to changing circumstances - led to more intervention in 19th and 20th century
2. Trad conservatives and Neo-conservatives: Organic authoritarians - strong state enforces law and order, upholds values, oversee society bound by common culture
3. One nation conservatives and Christian Democrats -Organic paternalists - uphold law and order but use welfarism to deal with social disorder and disquiet
4. Neo-conservatives - against dependency culture of welfarism and argue for less generous welfare state
5. Neo conservatives’ authoriatrianism means hawkish foreign policy
6. One nation conservatives - conciliatory foreign policy

Question 10

State Card 2 - Neo-liberal Conservatives of the New Right

Answer 10

1. Minimal state which
   
   1. maintains domestic order,
   2. enforce legal contracts,
   3. defence against foreign attack
2. Protect negative freedoms of citizens
   
   • Not infringe personal liberties e.g. sexuality, abortion, drug taking
3. Economic, moral and welfare issues are concerns for the individual not the state
4. Taxation - infringes individual liberty and creates dependency culture
5. Growth of the state gravest threat to individual freedom - Hayeck, Nozick, Rand, therefore tension with other branches of conservatism

Question 11

The State and the New Right - Ayn Rand

Wrote “Atlas Shrugged” 1957

Answer 11

1. Objectivism -
   
   1. Atomistic society where individuals enjoy negative freedom
   2. individuals are rational and moral purpose is to achieve happiness
   3. need to comprehend true nature of reality to independently achieve self-realisation and slef-fulfillment
2. Therefore rejecting critiques of rationalism and philosophy of imperfection
3. Purpose of society
   
   1. - Criticise concept of organic society - creates obligations that erode individual freedom
   2. Only moral purpose of society is to protect individual rights
   3. Small state to maitain free markets, social laissez-faire and defend borders
4. State interference comes from flawed understanding of altruism
   
   1. Oppose welfare
   2. Maintain your life through your own efforts
   3. Maintain property, no taxation

Question 12

The State and the New Right - Robert Nozick

Wrote “Anarchy, State and Utopia” 1974

Answer 12

1. INfluenced by Locke (individual rights) and Kant (individuals not to be treated as things or used as a resource)
2. THerefore self-ownership - of body, talents, abilities, labour
3. Miniaturist government -
   
   1. minimal interference with lives of individuals
   2. states function to protect individual rights - “limited to the narrow functions of force, theft, enforement of contracts and so on”
4. Attack idea of hierarchical social contract as conceived by Hobbes, Burke, Oakeshott - this restrict individual freedoms
5. Current state has too much power over personal freedom
6. Taxation - “taxation of earnings from labour is on a par with forced labour”
7. Criticises state determining welfare as “an illigitamet power of the state to enrich some persons at the expense of others”

Question 13

The Economy - Card 1

Answer 13

1. Traditional conservatives - classical liberal ideas of Adam Smith - free markets promotes economic activity and growth
2. Capitalism leads to economic inequality which is in keeping with hierarchical nature of society
3. Private property -
   
   1. provides moral well-being, aids self-actualisation
   2. Gives individuals a stake in society, however you believe it is structure (hierarchical, organic, atomised)
   3. Reduces individuals dependency upon the state
4. Traditional and one-nation conservatives more sceptical about laissez faire classical/neo-liberal theory
   
   1. hence protectionist tariffs in 19th century to shelter society and economy from market
   2. Keynesianism in 20th century - manage economy with paternalistic terms with goal of full employment
5. Neo-liberals - radical, drastic change based on ideology and rational concepts
   
   1. laissez-faire market economics and negative economic freedom
   2. roll back state’s involvement in society and economy
   3. abolish expensive welfare state and dependency culture
   4. deregulate and privatise services
   5. curtail powers that obstruct the free market - unions, regulators

Question 14

Differing Views and Tensions (1)- Traditional Conservatism

Answer 14

1. Imperfect humans, therefore state provides necessary authority to act as break on worst instincts
2. Society is hierarchical and unequal, with paternalistic duty (noblesse oblige”
   
   1. THis inequality is because do not have same abilities, talents, energy
   2. Occupations differentiated by skill, ability and financial rewards decided by supply and demand
   3. society’s elite are the natural leaders and other groups should accept this in interest of society as a whole
3. State has natural authority with disciplinary function to provide order, security, stability
4. Careful (not radical change) to adapt based on pragmatism, empiricism and Judaeo-CHristian morality
5. Intellectually imperfect therefore incapable of infallible political ideas
6. SOciety emerges organically, cannot be predicted, just responded to
   
   1. Burke said revolutionary France was contrived based on rational liberal ideas rather than tradition and pragmatism
   2. Not enter into change lightly

Question 15

Differeing Views and Tensions (2)

Traditional Conservatism - Michael Oakeshott

On being Conservative, 1962

Answer 15

1. Advocates a politics of scepticism
   
   1. Modern society unpredicatble and multifaceted
   2. imperfection therefore humans cannot fully understand reality
   3. Rationalism therefore misplaced, theories oversimplified
   4. Criticises leader acting on the “authority of his own reason” rather than experience -
   5. Fascism and communism modern example of rational ideology and its dangers
2. Instead a Politics of Faith - instead faith in trusted institutions and empiricism - in what has worked
3. Like Burke, careful change
   
   1. ​informed by pragmatism and empiricism
   2. flexible, not rigid, ideological

Question 16

Differing Views and Tensions 2

One Nation Conservatism

Answer 16

1. Updated application of Burke’s view of “change to conserve”
2. Disraeli responds to threats of industrial revolution: increasing class inequality and decline in sense of community
   
   1. Embrace paternalism and social reform to preserve “one nation”
   2. Second Reform Act (1867) - gives working men the vote
   3. Artisans Dwelling Act (1875)
   4. Sale of FOod and Drugs Act 1875
3. HArold Macmillan develop further
   
   1. built 300k houses as housing minister under CHurchill (1951)
   2. mixed economy - combined state ownership and private enterprise (as PM, 1957-63)
   3. Wrote “the Middle Way”
4. Cameron - Concept of the “Big Society” to channel communal responsibilities
5. Cameron and May - accepting devolution but oppose independence for Scotland Wales, May talks of “bonds of family, community and citizenship”
6. In Europe, Christian Democracy
   
   1. social market of capitalism
   2. Supranationalism - sovereignty pooled , e.g. in EU

Question 17

Differeing Views and Tensions 3 - New Right

Neo-liberalism

Answer 17

1. Influenced by 19th Century Classical Liberalism
2. Human nature is rational and self-seeking - Rand rejects imperfection
3. Society is atomistic - individual rights more important than obligations and duties
4. Obligations and duties of the organic state a threat to freedom - Nozick and Rand say obligation is to oneself
5. Roll back the state to preserve individual freedom
   
   1. High Taxation infringes individual rights
   2. welfare state creates dependency
   3. free market economy, embrace negative freedom
6. Economy
   
   1. Nationalised industries and state planning distort free markets, therefore inefficient, worsen performance
   2. Exception for intervention is to tackle inflation because reduces economic activity
   3. Friedman says Keynesiams is inflationary, instead monetarism to control money supply by cutting public spending
   4. Embraced by Thatcher and Reagan in 80s

Question 18

Differeing Views and Tensions 4 - New Right, Neo-conservatism

Answer 18

1. Influenced by 19th Century traditional Conservatism
2. Informed by Judaeo-Christian values - Horrified by 1960s sexual revolution
3. Key ideas
   
   1. Pragmatism over principle
   2. organisc society based on Christian values, traditional marriage, anti-permissiveness
      
      1. abolition of abortion laws (particularly USA)
      2. antipathy to homesexuality and LGBTQ+ rights
   3. accept noblesse oblige but argue welfare state too generous, creating dependency
   4. Organic authoritarians
      
      1. Thatcher and Reagan war on drugs
      2. hawkish foregn policy to protect society and values - anti USSR, Falklands, First Gulf War, Blair and Bush also neo-conservative foreign policy with 2nd Gulf War.

Question 19

Differing Views and Tensions - Human Nature

Answer 19

1. Traditonal conservatives, one nation conservatives, Christian Democrats and New Right Neo-conservatives adhere to original view of conservatism
   
   1. Humans are imperfect- unequal and morally, intellectually and psychologically imperfect
   2. hierarchical organic society
   3. State protects citizensfrom individual selfishness for benefit of all
   4. distrust rationalism
2. New Right Neo-liberals more positive view of human nature
   
   1. faith in human rationality
   2. therefore individualism supersedes state and society

Question 20

Differing Views and Tensions - Society

Answer 20

1. Society provides stability, security and brake on worst instinctsof imperfect humans and the individual selfish pursuit of desires - Burke and Oakeshott agreeing with Hume
2. Neo-liberals at odds with rest of conservatism
   
   1. society is atomistic
   2. negative freedom and individualism more important than obligations to society

Question 21

Differing Views and Tensions - the State

Answer 21

1. Traditional conservatives and one- nation conservatives
   
   1. ruling class governs paternalistically for benefit of all
   2. Post-war: increasing role in the economy
   3. benevolent welfarism to solve social instability and disorder
2. New Right oppose welfarism
   
   1. Neo-liberals atomistic view of society, welfarism creates dependency, undermines individual freedom
   2. Neo-conservatives - agree with noblese oblige but think welfarism too has become too generous
3. Social Issues
   
   1. New RIght ambivalent on social issues except neo-conservatives oppose sexual and social revolutions, erode traditional values - champion anti-permissiveness
   2. Neo-liberals belief in negative freedom therefore not interfere with matters like drug taking, sexuality, abortion
4. Foreign Policy
   
   1. ​One Nation conservatives - concilatory policy to defend nationalistic values
   2. Traditional and neo-conservatives are orgainic authoritarians, therefore hawkish
   3. Neo-liberals - protect borders
5. Suprantionalism -
   
   1. ​supported by European Christian Democrats,
   2. distrusted by neo-liberals who believe in atomistic society,
   3. distrusted by one nation and traditional conservatives because thereaten national sovereignty

Question 22

Differing Views and Tensions - The Economy

Answer 22

1. Traditional conservatives - classical liberal ideas of Adam Smith -
   
   1. free markets promote economic activity and growth
   2. Keynesian economics after second world War - state intervenes to maintain full employment
2. New Right: Neo liberals
   
   1. against big state politics and Keynisian intervention - against atomistic view of society
   2. want laissez faire economy and not restrict individual freedom
3. New Right: Neo- conservatives
   
   1. sympathetic to neo-liberal classical liberal economics because similar to traditional conservative view of the economy
   2. But pragmatism, hence support govt intervention during 2008 economic crisis