conservatism

Question 1

What is conservatism in latin

Answer 1

‘to retain’

Question 2

what are the origins of conservatism

Answer 2

Toryism emerged during the Restoration 1660- 1688 which supported a hierarchal society with a monarch who ruled by divine right

Question 3

define conservatism

Answer 3

the desire to conserve with a resistance or suspicion of change

Question 4

pragmatism

Answer 4

• pragmatism means rationality and caution
• “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”
• pragmatism is an approach where society should be flexible with decisions made on a basis of what already works
• EDMUND BURKE critical of the French rev because they got rid of a system that had been in place for so long and believed the rev could’ve been avoided. He believed change should happen peacefully through evolution rather than conflict
• humans lack the intellect to reason the complex realities of the world; this dismisses the working class

Question 5

tradition

Answer 5

• if you are challenging tradition you are challenging god
• the monarchy, hetro-sexual relationships and the nuclear family have always worked so why change it? FOR EXAMPLE the monarchy promotes unity and pride as seen at the 2011 royal wedding
• tradition allows a strong sense of identity whereas no tradition gives instability and insecurity

Question 6

human imperfection

Answer 6

• perfection is impossible therefore have a very pessimistic view of human nature
• humans are flawed psychologically, morally and intercellular
• therefore it is stressed that:
  1 tough law and order deters criminals
  2 humans are competitive so a successful political system will recognise that self interest is a more powerful motivator than selfishness.

Question 7

paternalism

Answer 7

• people who are the best equipped should lead because of their birth, inheritance and upbringing
• the working class can’t develop certain skills that the upper class have
• upper class have a duty of care for the lower class
  EG DAVID CAMERON - called for ‘compassionate conservatism’ HOW? - eg boosting the right to buy council house scheme introduced by Thatcher that he claimed would encourage the building of 200,000 houses and creation of 400,000 jobs
• two types of paternalism
  1 - soft: consent to paternalism
  2 - hard: paternalism is imposed regardless of consent
  NOBLESS OBLIGE - the duty of the wealthy and privialged to look after those less fortunate

Question 8

what is atomism

Answer 8

society is made up of self interested and self sufficient individuals

Question 9

what does nobles oblige mean

Answer 9

the duty of the wealthy and privileged to look after those less fortunate

Question 10

what does change to conserve mean

Answer 10

that society should adapt to changing circumstances rather than reject change and risk rebellion
eg the ongoing maintenance of a building which doesn’t come from inaction

conservatism is the ‘doctrine of maintenance’

Question 11

KEY THINKER - HOBBS
- state, we need it

Answer 11

• a state of nature would be ‘nasty brutish and short’
• ‘natural chaos’ stemmed from a lack of authority which is supposed to determine right and wrong; people’s definition of right and wrong can differ which leads to uncertainty and war
• without a state there would be no civil society
• autocratic leadership style is best

Question 12

KEY THINKER - EDMUND BURKE
society
TRADITIONAL CON

Answer 12

• society is too optimistic because people fail more than they succeed
• Very critical of the French rev: aims weren’t realistic and no one had any real answers. It came about because the aristocracy failed to represent the interest of the majority so the rev was inevitable but preventable
• the unrealistic view society want is better to hear bu aren’t prepared to accept that in reality you have to ‘fail more than you succeed’

Question 13

KEY THINKER - OAKESHOTT
state/ society more middle ground and understanding

Answer 13

• people are ‘fallible but not terrible’
• if you realise human imperfection then you’ll have a greater appreciation of the pleasure that already exist in life like family
• experience and failure allows for growth
• the state exists to ‘prevent the bad rather than create the good’.

Question 14

KEY THINKER - RAND
human nature/ neo liberal - quite liberal on social aspects but conservative on economic views

Answer 14

• a successful society is based on the willingness of the people, not the effort of the state
• we should act as individuals
• support a laissez fair economy, tax cuts and privatisation
• the state is crucial to have liberty because it can give order and security which cant be achieved elsewhere
• supporter of atomism: society is made up of millions of independent atoms who don’t follow a simple form

Question 15

Traditional conservatism

Answer 15

• emerged after french rev: it was reactionary instead of non reactionary (planning ahead and adapting to maintain
• hierarchy, paternalism, church
• BURKE: change to conserve
• lots of reform eg Met Police Force created which made society safer. it strengthened the justification for the state and that order and authority are needed: preventing Hobbs “nasty brutish and short” state of nature
• ‘without security there can be no liberty’

Question 16

one nation conservatism 19TH CENTURY

Answer 16

• there was a demand for more democracy and less aristocracy which led to the creation of one nation. This is because people were more educated than ever
• Disraeli: to maintain social control you need to please the class conscious people to quite them down
• Disraeli: “the palace is not safe when the cottage is not happy”
• Disraeli: all social classes are part of the same family
• to support this family, there should be greater state intervention in society and the economy, so higher taxation and public spending: this was very unusual for conservatives but the motive was to keep people in their place and avoid revolution - unlike the liberals who were doing it for a safety net
• paternalism

Question 17

one nation conservatism 20th CENTURY

Answer 17

• shaped by reactions to fascism, socialism and communism. eg the LABOUR PARTY arguing for a middle way; the CONS adapted some of these socialist ideas such as carrying on the NHS because it is pragmatic to stay popular
• pragmatism and paternalism
• OASKESHOTT: “the state exists to prevent the bad rather than create the good”

Question 18

Neo liberalism - economic focused

Answer 18

• mostly focused on economic policies
• create a free market economy
• end of dependency culture
• privatisation of services eg post office
• reduce the power of Trade Unions because they were ‘obstructive’

Question 19

neo conservatism - society focused

Answer 19

• the restoration of authority
• tough laws deter crime
• multiculturalism is a threat to national unity and it proves divisive
• less tolerant to immigration

Question 20

localism

Answer 20

conservatives see society as a collection of localised communities - Burke: “little platoons”
these communities provide security
Burkes objections to the FRENCH REV was that it was centred around a single French society that would override local loyalties - this was reinforced by the new french republic which had a very centralized state

Question 21

organicism

Answer 21

society emerges gradually and organically and therefore mysteriously
see society less like a machine, responsive to whichever levers are pulled and more like a plant which grows in a way which can’t be predicted - not mallible

Question 22

empiricism and oakeshott’s opinion

Answer 22

empiricism means evidence rather than theory

cons look at society in empirical terms
contrasts the ‘normative’ approach by liberals of what ‘should be’ and looks at what can be and what has been to look at what to do next

oakeshott - conservative society aims to ‘stay afloat’ in uncertain waters instead of sailing towards a destination no one is certain about

Question 23

property in society

Answer 23

‘little platoons’ Burke - is a reference to property
property is tied to tradition and continuity
property is inherited by one generation from another which provides a degree of stability in an imperfect world

Question 24

what strand of conservatism supports property

Answer 24

new right conservatives - want to extend property ownership throughout society and create a ‘property owning society

Question 25

order and authority

Answer 25

this is what separates conservatism so greatly from socialism and liberalism
cons see the state as having a more disciplinary function and one that provides authority

Question 26

what does hobbs think about authority in the state

Answer 26

“without order there could be no liberty and there could be no order until the emergence of clear and undisputed laws which are backed by the state” -HOBBS

the availability of individual rights was dependent on law and order because only the state can provide them

Question 27

definition of authority

Answer 27

making decisions that others must accept

Question 28

do conservatives support capitalism and why

Answer 28

yes because capitalism supports the economic inequalities which sharpen the distinction between rich and poor
cons defends hierarchy and inequality so ‘conservative economics’ has a pro capitalism flavour

Question 29

traditional conservatives in the economy

Answer 29

they have been dubbed capitalisms ‘reluctant supporters’ - because free market capitalism promotes risk and uncertainty
BUT they realise that it benefits property and hierarchy
-support a moderated form of capitalism in which free markets were tempered by state intervention

Question 30

new right in the economy

Answer 30

more sympathetic to free market economies
eg in the USA free market capitalism was referred to as REAGANOMICS
eg THATCHERISM aimed to ‘free’ the economy through privatisation
- if you disengage from the economy completely you can completely focus on state security and order (Hobbesian)