Ideologies Flashcards
Main Western Theories (4)
- Liberalism - 17th C - John Locke
- Republicanism - 18th C - JJ Rousseau
- Conservatism - 18th C - Edmund Burke
- Marxism - 19th C - Karl Marx
Liberalism
An ideology which holds individual liberty as its paramount value and argues that the state being a contract between citizens and their government must preserve the rights of individual through the rule of law, equality and opportunity and tolerance amongst its members
Adam Smith
Author of Wealth of Nations, 1776
Wrote about Economic Liberalism
- Believed economic rights of individual are key
- Free market ; Invisible Hand of Self-Interest (unintended greater social benefits and public good brought about by individuals acting in their own self-interests)
J. S Mill
Author of On Liberty, 1859
Political Liberalism
- Liberty is paramount value
Believed in Political Liberalism and that Liberty is paramount value and there were 3 basic kinds
1. Liberty of Thought (freedom of expression, publication, religion)
2. Liberty of Action (free from all constraint except Harm Principle)
3. Liberty of Association (free to join any organization you want)
Creator of the Harm Principle and Tyranny of the Majority
Main Tenants of Classical Liberalism (7)
- Individual Freedoms are Paramount
- Free Market
- Rule of Law
- Equality of Opportunity
- Tolerance
- Representative Government
- Division between Public & Private Spheres
Negative Liberty (Classical Liberal/Neoliberalism)
One of Isaiah Berlin’s Two Concepts of Liberty (1969)
Liberty “from” = Freedom from External Constrain
Role of the State is not to interfere & protect/preserve individual liberties
Manifested in Civil and Political Rights
Positive Liberty (Welfare/Reform Liberalism)
One of Isaiah Berlin’s Two Concepts of Liberty (1969)
Liberty “to” = Capacity to be master of one’s own destiny
Role of the State is to provide basic goods in so the individual can be free to act
Manifested in Social and Economic Rights
Positive Liberty (Welfare/Reform Liberalism) Thinkers
- T.H Green - “positive freedom”
- State intervention is necessary in economy - John Maynard Keynes - General Theory of Employment & Money, 1938
- Social rights are as important as civil/political rights, creation of welfare state
Negative Liberty (Classical Liberal/Neoliberalism/Libertarianism) Thinkers
- Friedrich Hayek - Road to Serfdom, 1944
- Milton Friedman - Capitalism and Freedom, 1962
= Both believe that bigger state is bad and is going to lead to problems
American Constitution (1776)
Anti-Monarchical, emphasizes the “people” and rule of law
Emphasizes civic virtue/duty
No foundational religion - separation of church and state
Conservatism
An ideology which seeks to avoid large-scale or radical change, conserve tradition, maintain institutions and defend general law and order
Edmund Burke (4)
Author of Reflections on the Revolution in France, 1790
Anti-Romantic/Revolutionary/Republican
1. Organic View of Society rather than mechanical
2. Conservation of Tradition
3. Pessimistic View of Human Nature
4. Inequality and Hierarchy
Neoconservatism
An ideology that defends two older traditions
- Fiscal Conservatism - economic classical/neoliberalism
- Social Conservatism - traditional social values along with law and order/security
Fiscal Conservatism
Economic Neoliberalism
- Minimal government intervention in market
- Decrease social spending
- Cut income taxes
- Maximize private sector
Social Conservatism (3)
- Increase state control functions and spending
- Protect individual’s right of self-defence
- Pro traditional family and values