conservatism Flashcards
what do conservatives think about human imperfection?
onc and hobbes agree that humans cannot comprehend reality is too complex for them
hobbes: negative view. humans are only interested in themselves and need to be kept in check. humans are: morally imperfect (humans are selfish and motivated by impulses), intellectually imperfect (reality is beyond understanding and abstract ideas will always be flawed, psychologically imperfect (humans are security dependent, rely on tradition and culture for an identity).
STATE OF NATURE; humans natural state is never ending conflict where they pursue their selfish desires which are fuelled by greed for power, material gratification and distrust of others. LIFE WOULD BE NASTY, BRUTISH AND SHORT
- however humans are not completely irrational because they recognise that their state of nature is not good and that they need a social contract for a soverign to provide order. this allows society to develop and live collectively without fear
burke: humans are imperfect to an extent. they are not ruthlessly individualistic but are naturally communal and they rely on communities
- humans are capable of making mistakes but not to the extent that hobbes believes, they are more likely to fail than succeed
- decision making on rationalistic ideas of abstract thought is ill advised because change should only be cautiously and empirically considered
oakshott: negative view of human nature to an extent. they are ‘fragile and fallible but are capable of benevolence
-a perfect society is unattainable because perfection cannot be created by imperfect creatures
rand: positive view: humans are capable of rational thought an should be objectivist in pursuing rational thought
- humans can also be altruistic
nozick: positive: individuals are rational and are driven by the idea of self ownership of their talent, abilities and labour
pragmatism
onc and hobbes agree that reality is too confusing for humans
new right reject pragmatism because they think it is holding people back
what do conservatives think of the state?
DISAGREEMENT
agreement: state should defend the existence of capitalism and the free market: tc burke wants to be pragmatic and fears rational ideas about abstract things. neo libs agree with free market and no intervention
disagree: neo libs want to abolish tax and onc favour higher tax
- most favour free market but onc prefer state intervention and nationalisation or welfare
hobbes: All power should be given to the state (an autocratic monarch) in order to keep the order and guarantee rule of law. subjects cede freedoms to avoid a state of war
burke: build on what worked in the past and only if needed, ‘change to conserve’, very gradually. Noblisee Obligee, the top should look after the bottom, and the bottom should obey - state depends on a hierarchy to be functional
oakshott: State should be guided by tradition and pragmatism (doing only what works), not being distracted by grand ideas. Didnt want the state to be rationalist as he believed that change should be guided by pragmatism nd empiricism.
rand: State should not have welfare, this infantilises individuals. state should play a minimal role in the life of an individual. Instead it should provide law and order, free market and defense.
nozick: Minarchist State needs to be a small as possible to get out of the way of individuals. Private companies should provide public services. State provides law, order, judgements and defense.
to what extent do conservatives agree on society?
- DISAGREE ON A PATERNALISTIC SOCIETY
- tc think that society is naturally heirachal. therefore burke believes in noblesse oblige
- new right disagrees with this. paternalism infantilises people. nozick believes there shouldn’t be paternalism in society
DISAGREEMENT ON ORGANIC SOCIETY:
- tc oakshott thinks tat local communities are essential and communities, traditions and customs have a symbiotic relationship
- new right disagrees, rand says that society is made up of atomised individuals who are self fulfilling and society does not objectively exist
AGREEMENT
- tc society only exists because of the leviatian and before this life was nasty, brutish and short
- onc society is preserved by the state
to what extent do conservatives agree on the economy?
AGREE
- disagreement STATE INTERVENTION. new right believes that the economy should only be determined by free market forces. nozick believes that deregulation in the economy is important
- onc disagree, free markets are too volatile and therefore need some government interventon. micheal oakshott advocates for paternalism in order to avoid a socialist uprising from the working classes. therefore, he advocates for some welfare provision.
AGREEMENT ON PRAGMATISM:
- ONC believes that the state needs to take a pragmatic approach to the economy. micheal oaksott believes that the boat can only stay afloat by being pragmatic
- traditional conservtaives agree that the state should not get carried away buy abstract ideas about the economy, like socialis. instead the state must be prgamatic and change to conserve the state - this means building on what worked in the past very gradually and this is to ensure that disparities do not lead to revolution
all conservatives agree on te free market.
tc. generally support a free makret with private property rights edmund burke supported the free market ideas of adam smith.
new right want to protect the free market as this ensures freedom and the free market is capable of sorting out all problems. ayn rand belives that
what do conservatives think of paternalism?
MORE AGREEMENT THAN DISAGREEMENT
ONC AND TC AGREE
tc believe in noblesse oblige, that social hierarchies have been set up, this is so that they can act paternalistically and look after those at the bottom.
- nr disagrees because they believe that paternalism infantilises people and it is not necessary as individuals are perfectly capable of making rational decisions themselves.
- one nation conservative believe that only a higher authority can reform society, and they should only reform pragmatically and gradually. for example, burke believes that the state and society resemble a living organism that needs to be pruned to bring about change but this should be done in a way that doesn’t lead to the complete breakdown of society
- the new right disagrees on paternalism in society. rand believes that paternalism shouldn’t interfere with social change and society is atomised, with individuals who are atomised and self sufficient.
- conservatives agree on paternalism in regards to human nature. tc agree that society needs a paternalitic higher authority to keep society in check. whilst humans are irrational, they recognise that they need a soverign to stop life being so short, nasty and brutish.
- new right believes that human nature can be too permissive and therefore a paternalistic state needs to legislate in order to protect society
to what exteent are conservatives united in their views of the state?
AGREEMENT THAT THE STATE NEEDS TO PROVIDE STABILITY TO AN EXTENT
- the state is supposed to provide stability, needs to provide positive and progressive use of the state to prevent division and provide relief for those in hardship.
- new right want the state to provide stability to an extent. ayn rand believes that a night watchman state is needed to ensure order and stability.
tc would agree that the state is necessary to provide stability and avoid chaos. hobbes would argue that without the state life would be ‘nasty, brutish and short’ and therefore a bad state is much better than no state
disagreement about the size of the state. NEW RIGHT WANT A SMALL STATE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. robert nozick is more concerned with freedom of the individual than ensuring there is stability. nozick wants the state to protect human rights but that is the limit. doesn’t want the state to interfere with market forces or a welfare state.
onc disagree and believe that the state needs to provide welfare to prevent an uprising and also because of ideas of social hierarchies. for example burke believes that due to nobless oblige there should be state intervention in the market.
DISAGREEMENT IN THE STATE ACTING TO PRESERVE THE ORGANIC STATE.
- traditional conservatives believe that when the state provides necessary order, society will emerge organically and mature into a complicated organism of traditions and customs. burke wrote of little platoons of society, which retain their identity and allow wider integration within the nation. this can only be reinforced by an organic state
- new right doesn’t not believe in an organic state that holds society together. rand argued that society is just a collection of individuals pursuing their own interests and have no obligations to each other. society does not objectively exist. therefore the state doesn’t need to create an organic society
to what extent do conservatives agree on human nature
- DISAGREEMENT
tc believe have an extremely pessimistic view of human nature, believe that humans cannot function freely without the interference of a higher authority. for example, hobbes thinks that without the state life would be nasty, butish and short
new right believes that the idea that humans are limited and irrational is incorrect and that view would not be used to take away freedoms of individuals. nozick believes that individuals are rational, driven by self ownership of talents, abilities and labour.
AGREEMENT ABOUT ABSTRACT IDEAS
- tc think that reality is too difficult for humans to comprehend. for example, hobbes believes that humans are intellectually imperfect and therefore they recognise this, and understand they need a state to keep them in check
- onc agrees that the human nature is imperfect and therefore a perfect society cannot be created by imperfect beings. oakshott thinks that humans are fragile and fallible. thus the human nature cannot be trusted to implement abstract ideas such as communism successfully.
have a positive view of human nature to an extent
onc: humans are capable of benevolence
rand thinks that humans are capable of rational thought and they are alturistic
