Summary Conservatism Notes

Conservatism – Notes

Historical Overview

 Conservative ideas arose in reaction to the growing pace of political, social and economic
change, symbolised by the French Revolution.
 Classic statement of conservative principles is in Burke’s Reflections on the French
Revolution which deeply regretted the revolutionary challenge that occurred
 In the 19th century, there was a growth of liberalism, socialism, and nationalism.
- While these ideologies preached reform, and supported revolution, conservatism stood
in defence of a traditional social order.

 UK conservatism uses Burkean ideas, who advocated not blind resistance to change, but
rather a prudent willingness to ‘change in order to conserve’.
 In continental Europe, autocratic monarchies persisted, so a very different and more
authoritarian form of conservatism developed
- defended monarchy and rigid autocratic values against the rising tide of reform.
 Only with the formation of Christian Democratic parties after WW2 did Germany and Italy
fully accept political democracy and social reform.
 The USA has been influenced relatively little by conservative ideas.
- Politicians of both major parties – the Republicans and the Democrats – have
traditionally resented being labelled ‘conservative’

 In Africa, Asia and Latin America, political movements have developed to resist change, but
they have seldom employed specifically conservative arguments and values.
 An exception to this is perhaps the Japanese Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)
- It has attempted to preserve traditional Japanese values and customs, supporting
distinctively conservative principles such as loyalty, duty and hierarchy.
 Conservatism has also exhibited an authoritarian character - Juan Perón in Argentina

 Conservatism has prospered as it is unwilling to be tied down to a fixed system of ideas.
 Prominent – Thatcher and Regan who both practised an unusually radical and ideological
brand of conservatism (New Right)
 New Right: An ideological trend within conservatism that embraces a blend of neoliberalism
and neoconservatism
 New Right ideas draw on free-market economics and have exposed deep divisions within
conservatism.
 Commentators argue that ‘Thatcherism’ and ‘Reaganism’, do not properly belong within
conservative ideology at all, as they are deeply influenced by classical liberal economics.

 New Right challenged traditional conservative economic views, but it remains part of
conservative ideology.
- Has not abandoned social principles such as a belief in order, authority, and discipline,
 Enthusiasm for free market – shown how conservatism has been influenced by liberal ideas.
- Conservatism has been divided between paternalistic support for state intervention and
a libertarian commitment to the free market.
- Significance of the New Right - sought to revive the electoral fortunes of conservatism by
readjusting the balance between these traditions in favour of libertarianism


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, Core Ideas and Principles

Human Nature

 Liberals and socialists tend to assume that human beings are naturally ‘good’, or that they
can be made ‘good’ if their social circumstances are improved
- Conservatives see human beings as both imperfect and imperfectible.
 Conservatism has been described as a ‘philosophy of human imperfection’ (O’Sullivan)
 Humans are psychologically limited and dependent creatures, fearing isolation and
instability.
 They are drawn psychologically to the familiar and seek the security of knowing ‘their place’.
 The belief that people desire security and belonging has led conservatives to emphasise the
importance of social order, and to be suspicious of the attractions of liberty.
- Order ensures that human life is stable and predictable; providing security in an
uncertain world.
- Liberty presents individuals with choices and can generate change and uncertainty.
 Conservatives have echoed the views of Thomas Hobbes in being prepared to sacrifice
liberty in the cause of social order.

 Political philosophies trace the origins of criminal behaviour to society, but conservatives
believe it is rooted in the individual.
 Humankind is innately selfish and greedy, as Hobbes put it, the desire for ‘power after
power’ is the primary human urge.
 Some conservatives explain this by reference to the Old Testament doctrine of ‘original sin’.
 Crime is not a product of inequality or social disadvantage, as socialists and modern liberals
tend to believe; it is a consequence of basic human instincts
 People can only be persuaded to behave in a civilised fashion if they are deterred from
expressing their violent and anti-social impulses.
- Only effective deterrent is law, backed up by the knowledge that it will be strictly
enforced.
 This explains the conservative preference for strong government and for ‘tough’ criminal
justice regimes (long prison sentences, and corporal/capital punishment)
 For conservatives, the role of law is not to uphold liberty, but to preserve order.

 Conservatives have traditionally believed that the world is simply too complicated for human
reason to grasp fully.
 The political world, as Michael Oakeshott put it, is ‘boundless and bottomless’.
 They prefer to ground their ideas in tradition, experience, and history, adopting a cautious,
and pragmatic approach to the world and attempt to avoid dogmatic beliefs.
 Political principles such as the ‘rights of man’, ‘equality’ and ‘social justice’ are fraught with
danger because they provide a blueprint for the reform or remodelling of the world.
 Conservatives have typically ignored the ‘politics of principle’ and adopted instead a
traditionalist political stance
 Conservative support for both traditionalism and pragmatism has weakened as a result of
the rise of the New Right.
 New Right is radical, as it sought to advance free-market reforms by dismantling inherited
welfarist and interventionist structures.

Key Figure – Thomas Hobbes

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