conservatism

Question 1

Traditional conservative view on HN

Answer 1

pessimistic view… humans flawed and incapable of reaching a state of perfection. Human nature is immutable.
Human imperfection kept in check due to human capacity for evil…
Hobbes soc bc of HN- ‘nasty, brutish and short’
humans have a ‘restless desire’ for power.
Stress that;
Tough stance on law and order, deter crim behaviour… HN cannot be transformed, tough stance for pol based on nat security rather than co-op
Human beh is selfish, suc pol syst recognise self-int is more powerful motivator than altruism
Modern soc= complex… peoples actions should be guided by pragmatism rather than ideology.
One nation cons agree

Question 2

Neo-liberals view on HN

Answer 2

self-reliant indivs capable of making rational decisions in their own interests.
Ayn Rand- rational pursuit of self-interest = morally right
Nozick based on Kant’s model…. humans should be treated ‘always as an end and never as a means only’ - humans are rational and self-aware beings w/free will.. shouldnt be treated as things or used against their will as resources

Question 3

Pragmatism

Answer 3

Associated w/ con thinkers such as Edmund Burke + Michael oakshott
Rejects theory + ideology in favour of practical experience- approach to society should be flexible made on basis of of what works.
Oakshott ‘to be a conservation is to prefer the tried to the untried’
Flexible approach to pol- best interests of people + What is acceptable to the public + what will maintain Soc stab
E & cohesion
Linked to Human rat … humans can’t comprehend complex realities of the world.

Question 4

Neo- cons on HN

Answer 4

Trad views
2 probs if a person is red to adopt their own moral code or lifestyle.
Indiv may opt for an ‘immoral lifestyle’- partic unacceptable to relig elements w/in neo-cons ranks in the us
People should not be free to choose diff moral pos bc this prevents the development of com moral standards, undermining social cohesion.
New- right critical of multiculturalism, threatens Soc and Nat unity by dividing Soc along ethnic, racial and relig lines.

Question 5

Trad cons view on state

Answer 5

Late 18th and 19th century, leadership assumed by the aristocracy. Elite rule on ground it was natural… for gens upper class had gov, been ed in the values of Soc and on pub services
Paternalism, long standing elite rule ensured those in pos of authority could draw on class and family trads of leadership, duty of Soc resp… best equipped to make decisions on behalf of Soc
Considered soft paternalism, other Soc groups w/in an organic Soc = accepted… natural leaders best equipped
Hobbes- freedom w/out order + auth wld have disastrous consequences

Question 6

1 Nat view on state

Answer 6

Disraeli enc for cons to renew its commitment to concepts of reform and social obligation.
Reforms to improve conds for poorest in society would reduce the likelihood of large-scale discontent, preserving pos of upper classes
DC argued for ‘compassionate conservatism’
Butler cons PM 1950s-60s gov was focused on ‘bringing together two nations into a single social entity’

Question 7

Neo-liberals on the state

Answer 7

Minimal state
Gov intervention cannot solve econ props/ properly allocate resources w/ a dev econ. Makes props worse.
State planning, nationalisation, high taxation are all rejected on the grounds they distort the market and contribute to econ probs
Rand- attempts to control + reg any indivs actions corrupts the capacity of that person to work freely as a prod memb of Soc by undermining their practice use of reason.
Nozick- states should act as night watchmen- powers limited to protecting people… a state which regs what people eat, drink, smoke etc interferes w/ right to use their self-owned bodies as they want.

Question 8

Neo-cons on the state

Answer 8

Strong pol leadership and authority.
Promotes strong state/ strong authoritarianism… incr pol powers and harsher punishments to tackle crime + pub disorder
Thatcher + Reagan in the ‘80s… prison sentences had to provide hard lessons

Question 9

Trad cons on society

Answer 9

Defend est based on commitment to organicism, hierarchy and paternalism
Soc= organic entity w/ complex interdep… cannot be randomly reconfigured… hence view of pragmatism. If bal disturbed, Soc = undermined and possibly destroyed.
Burke- state resemb living organism like a plant… changed when necessary through gentle ‘pruning’ most evolve naturally.
OS underpinned by hierarchy and authority… organic Soc must rest on inequality, held in place by custom + trad + accumulated wisdom + experience of the past.
Implementation of ideological blueprints and theory to bring about an ideal Soc can only lead to disaster, for example French rev, not based on human experience, drastic change.
Link to Burke cautious pragmatism would bring about necessary change peacefully
Oakeshott argues maintain Soc stability and cohesion by emphasising moderation, cautious change where necessary and a sense of historical continuity

Question 10

1N on society

Answer 10

Reforms to improve conditions for poorest in society wld reduce likelihood of large-scale discontent, preserving pos of upper classes
Wealthiest + most privileged Soc groups had a moral duty to help the poor
OS depended not only on ‘top down’ authority but also on elite’s acceptance of social responsibility.
Paternalism should embrace social reform/ welfare’s to strengthen national unity and preserve ‘one nation’

Question 11

Neo-libs on society

Answer 11

Reject assumptions underpinning an organic society
Soc composed of indep, rational individuals, operating w/in a free market. Soc based on individualism that releases human potential and est harmonious free relations between people.

Question 12

Neo-cons on society

Answer 12

Unwelcome changes threaten social fragmentation, only to be stopped by strong pol leadership and authority.
Auth needed to preserve society- influenced t some extent by trad con notions of organicism.
More authority than 1N… seeks to strengthen Soc by reasserting auth and Soc discipline rather than welfare measures. Need to uphold Soc order and protect public morality.
Since 1960s auth + resp decl in W’rn nations… hence incr crim figures
Argued for re-imp of auth and discipline w/in every level. Such as w/ family’s uphold hierarchy + patriarchy
Reject permissiveness suggesting no objective right or wrong. Anti-permissiveness and concern w/ public morality stems from emergence of ‘free-for-all’ or ‘anything-goes’ cultures. Thatcher advocated for Victorian values

Question 13

Trad cons on economy

Answer 13

Accept capitalism + private property… accept inequality w/in hierarchy + OS
Burke supports Laissez-faire econ… little gov int + low taxes

Question 14

1N on economy

Answer 14

Capitalist + industrialised society
Keynesian economic management technique, mixed economy- combined state ownership, regulation or control of certain aspects of economic activity w/ the drive and initiative of private enterprise
Expanded welfare state

Question 15

Neo-lib on econ

Answer 15

Promoted by work of econ such as Milton Friedman and Friedrich Hayek, champions free-market economy
Friedman asserted Keynesian policies to stimulate demand
Free-market= only mechanism that can meet consumer demand for goods and services efficiently. No gov int… operation of free market has to be protected against three main threats; monopolies, inflation and gov intervention.
AR- self-proclaimed ‘radical for capitalism’
Nozick reached radical conclusion that taxes levied to fund state welfare programmes = immoral… act as a type of forced labour imposed on the individual by the state + treats indivs as a mean/ resource… taxation = slavery. citizens entitles to benefits, states become partial owners of the individual… partial prop over their labour, self-ownership is undermined.

Question 16

Neo-cons on econ

Answer 16

Agree w/ neo-lib on reducing states role on the econ

Question 17

Tradition

Answer 17

Orig justif = relig roots- ‘god-given’ attempt to alter will undermine Soc
Burke- trad const of the accumulation of wisdom , dem their value to earlier Soc should be preserved… Soc was a partnership not only between those who are living, but between those who are living, those who are dead and those who are to be born.
Reform or change can be just if evolves Nat, seeking to destroy all trad political and social institutions- cutting themselves off from their past & paving the way for tyrannical regimes
Probs Soc & Indiv w/ a strong sense of identity
Fosters cohesion and security- reassuring collective sense of who they are, est powerful ties between people + spec Soc
Any attempt to implement radical changes lead to instability, anxiety and insecurity.

Question 18

Human imperfection

Answer 18

People= flawed + incapable of being perfect, HN = immutable
Human imperfection kept in check due to human cap for evil
HN cannot be transformed, for pol based on Nat sec, rather than lib notions of co-op + harmony
human behaviour = competitive, any successful pol syst will rec that self int is a more powerful motivator than altruism
Flawed in 3 ways
Psychological - humans = limited and dependent. Ppl crave safety, familiarity and the security of knowing place in Soc. Premium on social order, order proves humans w/ much-needed security.
Liberty raises the unsettling prospect of choice.
Moral- morally imperfect bc naturally selfish and greedy. Robust law and order syst that imposes severe sancs on such conduct is the only effective deterrent.
Intellectual- intellect and reasoning of humans are limited. Humans do not possess the mental faculties to make sense of a complex modern world. Reject overarching theories or ideologies that claim to explain or predict the dev of human society. Humans need to draw on trad, history, and practical experience.

Question 19

Libertarianism

Answer 19

Emphasises the right of indivs to liberty, advocating only min state int in the lives of citizens- primary role of state= protect Indiv rights
Emphasis on max econ freedom & min gov regulation in Soc affairs- rival to paternalism
Infl by Adam Smith’s arguments for econ lib.
Burke advocated for free trade and a market economy if such arrangements were efficient, just and ‘natural’- operation of the cap free market represented a Nat law could not be altered w/out damaging prosperity & working conds.
Assosciated w/ Thatcher + Reagan

Question 20

What is the libertarians biggest perceived threat to the market econ

Answer 20

Inflation- inhibits all forms of economic + business activity. Combat inflation by gov spending cuts to control the money supply
Also dismiss the mixed econ & pub ownership on the grounds of expense and inefficiency, while endorsing ‘supply side’ economics. Wld create conds to facilitate the highest possible levels of prod.
Producers access to key econ resources has to be unrestricted obstacles such as gov reg, high taxation & TU infl over the lab market. Underlying is the assumption that the innovative and dynamic qualities of entrep can only flourish when freed from restraints
Justifies its opp to state int by calling for individual liberties. Personal freedom can only be guarenteed by ‘rolling back’ the state, partic Soc welfare programmes.

Question 21

Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)

Answer 21

Leviathan (1651)- argued for almost total obedience to absolute gov, as the only alternative was chaos
Freedom w/out order + auth would have disastrous consequences for Soc. Hypothetical sit known as the ‘state of nature’ - people equal + free, didn’t have to answer to any form of higher auth. Humans would exhibit a ‘restless desire’ for power = conflict + turning the state of nature into a ‘war of every man against every man’
State of nature = state of war & life would become ‘solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.’
Fearful, self-int & rational people would choose to sacrifice many of their rights + freedom in return for order and security. Enter into a Soc contract
Gov is est by the consent of the people, who auth those in power to do everything necessary to preserve order + peace
Humans are needy + vulnerable. Will fight out of fear for personal security
Humans are lead astray in their attempts to understand the world around them. Human views on earth tend to be distorted by self-int
The best people hope for is a peaceful life under a strong govt auth to guarentee order + sec. Alt is to accept the ‘natural cond of mankind’ w/ its violence, insecurity + constant threats

Question 22

Edmund Burke (1729-97)

Answer 22

Founder of mod conservatism
Fundamental prob w/ Fr rev = repped an attempt to create a new society + syst of gov based on abstract principle (such as liberty + equality)- not lessons of the past. Principles not established, could only end in chaos or tyranny
State resembled a living organism like a plant that may be changed when necessary through gentle ‘pruning’ or ‘grafting’ to preserve the pol stab + Soc harmony.
Ref should be limited + cautious- take account of past- based on empiricism + trad. Rev change threatened to cut off Soc ‘roots’, leading to complete Soc + pol breakdown
Burke’s endorsement of the value of trad + empiricism- linked to organicism. Rep the accumulated + ‘tested’ wisdom of the past residing in society’s long-standing institutions, customs + practices- should be respected.
Cont respect for trad promotes Soc cont + stab. Est an obligation or duty for each gen to protect + pass on accumulated wisdom of trad to their successors + provides Soc & Ind w/ a strong sense of historical id.

Question 23

Michael Oakeshott (1901-90)

Answer 23

Modern Soc = unpredictable + complex. Cannot be understood in terms of abstract principles or theories.
‘Rational’ attempts to make sense of society’s behaviour inevitably distorts + simplifying the facts- prob comp by human imperfection as people do not have mental facts to max sense of complex mod world.
The ‘rationalist’ pol leader’s impulse to act solely on the ‘auth of his own reason’ rather than practical expertise enc dangerous ideas- leader fully understands Soc + knows how it should be changed. Brutal fascist + communist regimes est in the 20th century = clear misguided human rationalism in pol
Parl + gov in Britain - developed prag over time not followed a rat/ ideol path
Parl instils have existed for centuries and govern on the basis of history and experience
Rationalist politics is based on abstract principles and systems of ideological thought
Parliamentary instils dev pragmatically due to the prac demands of gov.
Rationalist pol leads to the destruction and the creation of a new pol and Soc order
Maintains Soc stab + cohesion by emphasising mod, cautious change + a sense of historical continuity
Is flexible, reflecting complex & shiftin Soc realities, unlike rigid theories + ideologies

Question 24

Ayn Rand (1905-82)

Answer 24

Rise of fascism + communism in the 20th century led many rec the role of the state in the lives of indivs.
Rand’s resp = objectivism, libertarian philosophical syst that advocates virtues of rat self-interest + maintains that individual freedom supports a pure, laissez-fair cap system.
Objectivism offered a set of principles covering all aspects of human life including pol, econ, culture + human rel. Reason prov the fundamental basis of human life + this led her to endorse a form of ethical Indiv that claimed the rational pursuit of self int = morally right.
Attempts to control/ regulate any indivs actions corrupted the cap of that person to work freely as a prod memb of society, by undermining their prac use of reason. Rej gov welfare + wealth redistribution progs bc the state relies on the implicit threat of force to ensure that people cont to such schemes through taxation.
This opp to extend coercion of the individual as the ‘non-aggression principle’ condemned all forms of personal altruism- ‘artificial’ sense of obligation + expectation. Does not accord w/ an indivs rat self-int
Self-proclaimed ‘radical for capitalism’
Unrestricted expression of human rationality was compatible w/ the free market
Called for ‘a full, pure, uncontrolled, unregulated laissez-faire’ econ- respects the Indiv pursuit of rat self-interest + fully consistent w/ non-aggression principle
‘Must fight for capitalism, not as a practical issue, not as an economic issue, but, w/ the most righteous pride, as a moral issue’

Question 25

Robert Nozick (1938-2002)

Answer 25

Partly based on Kant’s moral principle. Humans should be treated ‘always as an end & never as a means only’- humans = rat, self-aware beings w/ free will- shouldn’t be treated as mere things or used against their will as resources
Reached concl that taxes to fund state welfare = immoral bc:
- amount to a type of forced labour. Imposed on the individual by the state
- treat indivs as a means/ resource to further the goals of equal + seen Soc justice- violate that humans should be seen as better ends in themselves
Only state that can be just = ‘night watchman’ powers lim to protect people against violence, theft and fraud.
Used concept of self-ownership to sup- indivs own themselves: their bodies, talents, abilities + lab- Indiv should keep rewards they earn. Opposes taxation to fund self prog + sups the min state.
Taxation = slavery- citizens entitle to benefits become partial owners of the individual- partial prop rights over their lab- self-ownership is undermined.
State which regs what people eat, drink, smoke etc interferes w/ right to use their self-owned bodies as they want.