Ideologies quick notes Flashcards
Key Conservative takeaways
- Conservatism emphasizes pragmatism, tradition, and human imperfection.
- Different strands of conservatism (traditional, One Nation, New Right) have varying views on the state, economy, and society.
- The New Right, influenced by neoliberalism and neoconservatism, diverges significantly from traditional conservative principles.
- Key thinkers like Burke, Disraeli, and Thatcher have shaped the evolution of conservative thought.
Traditional Conservatism
Principles:
- Pragmatism: Emphasizes practical experience over abstract theories.
- Tradition: Values the accumulated wisdom of the past.
- Property: Sees property ownership as essential for stability.
- Hierarchy and Authority: Considers social hierarchy as natural and necessary.
- Organic Society: Views society as evolving organically, like a plant.
- Human Imperfection: Acknowledges human fallibility and limitations.
Emergence of Conservatism
- Context: Emerged as a response to the French Revolution, opposing its emphasis on liberty, equality, and fraternity.
- Key Figure: Edmund Burke: Articulated the foundations of conservatism in his Reflections on the Revolution in France, advocating for the preservation of established institutions, social hierarchy, and gradual change.
19th-Century Implementation of Traditional Conservatism
- Support for monarchy and the Church of England.
- Opposition to the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829.
- Emphasis on law and order (e.g., Robert Peel’s Metropolitan Police Service).
- Initially opposed the 1832 Reform Act.
- Key Thinker: Michael Oakeshott: Restated traditional conservative principles in the mid-20th century, emphasizing pragmatism and the importance of tradition.
One Nation Conservatism
- Development: Emerged in the mid-to-late 19th century in response to industrialization and the rise of socialism.
- Key Figure: Benjamin Disraeli: A key figure in the development of one nation conservatism.
Principles:
- Paternalism: The upper classes have a moral responsibility to care for the less fortunate.
- National Unity: Emphasizes a cohesive society and patriotism.
- Changing to Conserve: Recognizes the need for some reform to maintain tradition.
- 19th-Century Implementation: Social reforms under Disraeli (e.g., Public Health Act, Factory Act) and introduction of income tax.
- 20th-Century Implementation: Acceptance of the mixed economy, welfare state, and nationalization, recognizing the need to adapt to changing social and political contexts.
The New Right
- Emergence: Emerged in the 1970s, reacting against what it perceived as excessive concessions to socialist policies.
- Key Figures: Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan: Associated with the New Right.
Ideology: A combination of neoliberalism and neoconservatism. - Neoliberalism: Advocates for minimal state intervention in the economy, free markets, and individual enterprise.
- Neoconservatism: Focuses on traditional values, strong national defense, and law and order.
The New Right Rejection of Conservative Principles:
- Atomism: Views society as a collection of individuals rather than an organic whole.
- Rejection of hierarchy and paternalism.
- Emphasis on individual freedom and meritocracy.
- Key Thinkers: Ayn Rand and Robert Nozick:
Ayn Rand: Promoted objectivism, emphasizing rational self-interest.
Robert Nozick: Advocated for libertarianism, emphasizing individual rights and minimal state intervention. - Thatcher’s Government (Case Study):
Neoliberalism: Privatization, deregulation, reduced taxation, and the right-to-buy scheme.
Neoconservatism: Prioritized defense and law and order, and promoted traditional values.
Core Principles and Ideas
- Pragmatism:
Traditional and One Nation conservatives emphasize making decisions based on what works.
The New Right often rejects pragmatism, prioritizing ideology. - Tradition:
Conservatives value tradition as the accumulated wisdom of the past.
The New Right’s approach to tradition varies, with some supporting traditional values and others being driven by ideology. - Paternalism and Hierarchy:
Traditional conservatives have an authoritarian approach.
One Nation conservatives support paternalism and the idea that the state should care for the less privileged.
The New Right rejects paternalism and hierarchy. - Capitalism and Property:
Conservatives support capitalism and property rights.
Traditional and One Nation conservatives see capitalism as a pragmatic system.
The New Right supports capitalism due to its emphasis on individual freedom. - Organic Society:
Traditional and One Nation conservatives support an organic view of society.
The New Right promotes atomism. - Human Imperfection:
Conservatives believe humans are flawed and need guidance.
The New Right rejects this pessimistic view, viewing humans as rational. - State’s Role: Order and Security:
All strands agree that the state should provide order and security.
Evaluation: Agreement vs. Disagreement
- Argument for More Disagreement: The New Right fundamentally rejects key conservative principles.
- Argument for More Agreement: Significant agreement exists, particularly between traditional and One Nation conservatives.
Conservatism Key Thinkers
- Thomas Hobbes: Preceded conservatism, but his ideas on human nature and the state influenced conservative thought.
- Edmund Burke: The father of conservatism, emphasizing tradition, empiricism, and gradual change.
- Benjamin Disraeli: A key figure in one nation conservatism, emphasizing paternalism and national unity.
- Michael Oakeshott: Restated traditional conservative views, emphasizing pragmatism and tradition.
- Ayn Rand: Advocated for neoliberalism, promoting objectivism and individual freedom.
- Robert Nozick: Advocated for libertarianism, emphasizing individual rights and minimal state intervention.
Main liberalism content
- The Evolution of Liberalism
Origins: Liberalism has its origins in the Enlightenment of the 17th century, emphasizing reason over faith, challenging hierarchies and theocracy. - Classical Liberalism:
Early Classical Liberalism: John Locke was a key figure in advocating for natural rights, liberty, and limited government. - Response to the Industrial Revolution: In response to the social and economic changes brought about by the Industrial Revolution, some adhered to classical liberalism, while others advocated change.
- Modern Liberalism:
Early Modern Liberalism: Emphasizing positive freedom, the belief that the state should actively address the inequalities brought about by industrialization and free-market capitalism.
Keynesianism: Keynes advocated state intervention in the economy in response to economic cycles. - Mid- and Late-Modern Liberalism: Thinkers such as John Rawls and Betty Friedan emphasized constitutional reform, social liberalism, and the welfare state.
- Neoliberalism: Emerged at the end of the 20th century and advocated a return to classical liberal principles, but was seen as part of conservatism, rather than liberalism.
Liberalism key takeaways
- Liberalism emphasizes individualism, freedom, rationalism, equality, and social justice.
- Classical liberalism focuses on negative freedom, limited government, and free-market capitalism.
- Modern liberalism advocates positive freedom, a welfare state, and state intervention to promote equality.
- There are different views within liberalism about the role of the state, the economy, and freedom.
Key principles and agreements of liberalism
- Individualism: Emphasizing the value and rights of the individual over the collective.
Classical liberalism: Individualism that focuses on selfishness, believing that the pursuit of self-interest by individuals will ultimately benefit society.
Modern liberalism: Advocates developmental individualism, which believes that individuals need support to develop fully. - Freedom: Emphasizes the individual’s right to think, act, and make decisions without undue interference.
- Classical liberalism: Emphasizes negative freedom, i.e., freedom from state interference.
- Modern liberalism: Emphasizes positive freedom, the ability to realize one’s potential.
- Rationalism: The belief that humans are rational and logical and capable of making rational decisions.
- Progress: Optimistic belief that humans can shape social progress through rationality and autonomy.
- Capitalism and private property: Liberalism supports capitalism and believes that economic freedom is essential to individual freedom.
Classical liberalism: Supports laissez-faire capitalism with minimal government intervention.
Modern liberalism: Support Keynesianism and empower the state, state intervention to promote equality. - State: Liberals believe that the state is necessary but potentially evil and therefore should be limited.
Classical Liberalism: Supports the night guard state, i.e. the government has a limited role.
Modern Liberalism: Support for the empowerment of the state, i.e., the government actively promotes social welfare. - Equality and Social Justice: Emphasizing that all individuals have equal value and should be treated fairly and fairly.
Classical liberalism: Emphasizes formal equality and meritocracy.
Modern liberalism: Supports formal equality, but advocates for state action to promote real equality of opportunity. - Natural Rights and Society: Belief that individuals have birthright.
- Tolerance: Believes that a just society must be inclusive and protective of all beliefs, lifestyles, and identities.
- Liberal Democracy: The belief that the government should represent the will of the people through elections, but should be limited in order to protect civil liberties.
Liberal tensions and divisions
- State: Classical liberalism supports the night guard state, while modern liberalism supports the empowered state.
- Economy: Classical liberalism supports laissez-faire capitalism, while modern liberalism supports Keynesianism and empowering the state.
- Social: Classical liberalism focuses on negative freedom, while modern liberalism focuses on positive freedom; Classical liberalism focuses on selfish individualism, while modern liberalism focuses on developmental individualism; Classical liberalism supports formal equality, while modern liberalism believes that equality of opportunity should be promoted.
- Human Nature: Classical liberalism believes in selfish individualism and negative freedom, while modern liberalism believes that human beings need support to achieve positive freedom.
Liberal thinkers
- John Locke (classical liberalism): Advocates of natural rights, limited government, and social contract theory.
- Mary Wollstonecraft (Classical Liberalism): Advocates for women’s rationality, formal equality, and educational opportunity.
- John Stuart Mill (Transitional Liberalism): Emphasis on the principle of harm, representative democracy, and developmental individualism.
- John Rawls (Modern Liberalism): Proposed a theory of justice that supports the empowerment of the state in order to achieve justice and fairness.
- Betty Friedan (Modern Liberalism): Emphasizes legal equality, equal opportunity for women, and calls for state intervention to remove barriers.
- Adam Smith (classical liberalism): Advocated free-market capitalism, believing that the “invisible hand” promotes economic prosperity and social well-being.
- Samuel Smiles (classical liberalism): Emphasizes self-help, believing that individuals can improve their lives through hard work.
- Herbert Spencer (Classical Liberalism): Advocates social Darwinism, arguing that the least amount of government intervention can lead to social evolution.
- T.H. Green (Modern Liberalism): Advocates positive freedom, believing that the state has a responsibility to create conditions for personal development.
- John Maynard Keynes (Modern Liberalism): Advocated Keynesian economics, arguing that state intervention could stabilize the economy
Key Socialism takeaways
- Socialism emerged in the 19th century as a response to the Industrial Revolution and the inequalities of capitalism.
- Revolutionary socialists like Marx and Engels advocated for a violent revolution by the working class to establish a communist society.
- Evolutionary socialism, including social democracy and the Third Way, emerged, advocating for achieving socialism through democratic processes and reform.
- Key socialist principles include collectivism, common humanity, equality, social class, workers’ control, and opposition to capitalism.
- Different strands of socialism have varying views on the extent of state intervention, workers’ control, and the role of capitalism.
Emergence of Socialism
- Socialism emerged in the 19th century as a response to the Industrial Revolution.
- The Industrial Revolution led to class divisions and economic inequalities.
- Early socialists criticized capitalism for exploiting the working class.
- They advocated for a new system with equality through wealth redistribution and worker control.
Strands of Socialism and terms
- Revolutionary Socialism: Advocated by Marx and Engels, emphasizing revolution and communism
- Evolutionary Socialism/Democratic Socialism/Revisionism: Socialism through democratic processes and reforms.
- Social Democracy: Socialism within a capitalist system
- The Third Way: A middle ground between capitalism and social democracy.
Key Socialism for society terms
- Revolution: The proletariat (working class) seizes control
- Evolutionary Methods: Gradual change through democratic processes.
- Rejection of Revolution: Socialism can be achieved through democratic means.
Key Principles of Socialism
- Collectivism: Collective action is more valuable than individual effort.
- Common Humanity: Humans are social, cooperative, and rational.
- Equality: Economic inequality is unfair, and the state should intervene.
- Social Class: Class exploitation is inherent in capitalism.
- Workers’ Control: Workers should control the workplace and economic decision-making.
Opposition to Capitalism: Deeply opposed to capitalism.
Key socialism for economy terms
- Historical Materialism: Societal development through stages of economic development.
- Capitalism: Creates class oppression and inequalities.
- Communism: Classless, stateless society with communal ownership.
- Globalization: Free market capitalism for economic growth.
- State Role: Promoting principles within the market.
Socialism Agreements and Disagreements
- State: Agreement on state intervention, disagreement on the extent and control.
- Economy: Agreement on capitalism’s flaws, disagreements on its management or eradication.
- Society: Agreement on pursuing equality, disagreements on collectivism, and class.
- Human Nature: Agreement on common humanity, disagreements on its realization within capitalism.
More Disagreement: Revolutionary socialism vs. Third Way.
More Agreement: Shared belief in equality and capitalism’s flaws.
Key Thinkers
- Marx and Engels: Foundations of socialist thought.
- Key Ideas: Class struggle, historical materialism, revolution, communism.
- Beatrice Webb: Inevitability of gradualness, socialism through democracy.
- Rosa Luxemburg: Rejected evolutionary socialism, emphasized working-class revolution.
- Anthony Crosland: Socialism within a capitalist framework, equality of opportunity.
- Anthony Giddens: Third Way, individual empowerment, and equality of opportunity.
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Key tiggsy Feminism Takeaways
- Historical Development: Feminism has evolved through different waves (liberal, socialist, radical, postmodern), each with distinct focuses and goals.
- Key Principles: Core concepts include patriarchy, the personal is political, sex and gender, equality vs. difference, and intersectionality.
- Strands of Feminism: Liberal, socialist, radical, and postmodern feminisms offer varying approaches to achieving gender equality.
- Thinkers: Key thinkers include Mary Wollstonecraft, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Simone de Beauvoir, Betty Friedan, Kate Millett, Sheila Rowbotham, and bell hooks.
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