Conservatism flashcards Nathan

Human imperfection

• humans morally, intellectually and psycologivally imperfect (Hobbes - ‘state of nature’ is consequently never-ending conflict → needs social contract)

• Burn - humans imperfect BUT naturally communal, scope of human reason poor (more likely to fail than succeed) → change should be cautious and empirical

• Oakshott - Humans ‘fragile. And fallible’ BUT capable of benevolence, ‘politic of scepticism’ (abstract ideas have negative consequences); ‘be mindful the cure is not worse than the disease’

Organic society

• society emerges and develops like organism, natural rights a rationalistic creation

• tradCons - ‘state precedes society’; society organically emerge after state provides order

• Communities and institutions provide meaning

• Burke - society must ‘change to conserve’; customs/institutions maintained, but concessions made to prevent revolution

• Hierarchy natural (Hobbes Monarchy, Burke aristocracy, Oakeshott HoL)

Pragmatism

• empiricism > rationalism

• ‘Change to conserve’ - Peel Great reform act, repeal of corn laws, Disraeli (rep of people act 1867, PHA 1875), MacMillan (300,000)

• New right deviates - thatcher

Paternalism

• hierarchy natural, ruling class has ‘noblesse oblige’ to lower classes (help those who are unable to act in own interests)

• Pragmatic in nature

• Disraeli and MacMillan

• NeoCons - creates culture of dependency (advocate benefit reduction ect

Tradition

• accumulated wisdom of past underpins society; religion ‘our comfort, and one great source of civilisation’

• Embody continuity → peace

• Burke - Society ‘a partnership between living, dead and those yet to be born’

• Wisdom accumulates in institutions (monarchy, university, religion)

Libertarianism

• Inherent in tradCon (laissez faire)

• Rand - society atomistic - doesn’t truly exist as we are merely a loose collection of independent beings

• Egotistical individualism and negative freedom

• Nozick - minarchist state plates role of ‘nightwatchman’ (law and order, basic protections)

• Anti-taxation, privatisation, individual ‘left alone’

Traditional conservatism

• reactionary - sought to defend aristocracy despite external change (Hobbes, Romanovs)

• Non-reactionary - change implemented after careful consideration (Burke) - Corn laws repeal, met police

• Oakeshott - conservationists a ‘natural disposition’ rather than ideology; ‘what has stood the test of time is good ad must not be lightly cast aside’

One-nation conservatism

• Early - Disraeli era (noblesse oblige), empiricism, tensions between rich and poor to ensure ‘one nation’; ‘the Alsace is not safe when the cottage isn’t happy’ (e.g., 1867 representation of the people Act)

• Late - MacMillan (300k houses per year as housing minister) → preserving society of paramount importance, rejected empiricism (Keynesianism)

• Acceptance of social liberalism (legalisation of homosexuality and gay marriage)

Human nature

• Hobbes - cynical: individuals are selfish, riven by a relentless an ruthless desire for supremacy and security

• Burke - sceptical: the ‘crooked timber of humanity’ is marked by a gap between aspiration and achievement. We may conceive of perfection but we are unable to achieve it

• Oakeshott - modest: humanity is at its best when free from grand designs and when focused on the routines of everyday life

• Rand - ‘objectivist’: we are - and ought to be - guided by rational self interest and the pursuit of self fulfilment

• Nozick - egotistical: individuals are driven by a quest for ‘self-ownership’, allowing them to realise their full potential

The state

• Hobbes - the state arises ‘contractually’ from individuals who seek order and security. To serve its purpose the state must be autocratic and awesome

• Burke - the state arises organically and should be aristocratic, driven by a hereditary elite, reared to rule in the interests of all

• Oakeshott - the state should be guided by tradition and practical concerns. Pragmatism, not dogmatism, should be its watchword

• Rand - the state should confine itself to law, order and national security. Any attempt to promote ‘positive liberty’ via further state intervention should be resisted

• Nozick - the minarchist state should merely outsource, renew and reallocate contracts to private companies providing public services

The economy

• Hobbes - constructive and enduring economic activity is impossible without a state guaranteeing order and security

• Burke - trade should involve organic free markets and Laissez-faire capitalism

• Oakeshott - free markets are volatile and unpredictable, and may require pragmatic moderation by the state

• Rand - free-market capitalism is an expression of ‘objectivist’ individualism and should not be hindered b the state

• Nozick - the minarchist state should detach itself from a privatised and deregulated economy, merely arbitrating disputes between private economic organisations