Lecture on Conservatism for PS 240 Intro to Political Theory, Fall 2014, University of Kentucky

1. Conservatism
Dr. Christopher S. Rice

2. What IS a conservative?
(cc) 2008 Flickr user NewsHour

3. Ambrose Bierce

4. Michael Oakeshott

5. Samuel Huntington

6. Russell Kirk

7. All conservatives want to
conserve/preserve something
(hence the name)
(duh)

8. 2
ways of considering
conservatism as an
ideology

9. Conservatism as
resisting change

10. Human Condition
Time

11. Human Condition
Time

13. Conservatism as a
distinctive political
position

14. Classical Conservatives
vs.
Individualist Conservatives

15. Divisions run deep…
(cc) 2008 flickr user Fundenburg

16. How Conservatism differs
from other ideologies
1. Rather than being defined in terms of abstract principles of
justice, conservatism is commonly defined in relation to
changing historical contexts.
2. Conservatism can be considered more of a disposition or
temperament, rather than a strict belief system.
3. Conservatism as a belief system (if it is a belief system at
all) is marked by many internal tensions.
4. Conservatives, because of their lack of agreement over
philosophical principles, tend to unite around specific issues.
5. Conservatives, according to Charles Kessler, often find it
easier to say what they are against than what they are for.
Specifically, they often tend to oppose aspects of liberal
capitalism.

17. How Conservatism differs
from other ideologies
1. Rather than being defined in terms of abstract principles of
justice, conservatism is commonly defined in relation to
changing historical contexts.
2. Conservatism can be considered more of a disposition or
temperament, rather than a strict belief system.
3. Conservatism as a belief system (if it is a belief system at
all) is marked by many internal tensions.
4. Conservatives, because of their lack of agreement over
philosophical principles, tend to unite around specific issues.
5. Conservatives, according to Charles Kessler, often find it
easier to say what they are against than what they are for.
Specifically, they often tend to oppose aspects of liberal
capitalism.

18. “To be conservative…is to prefer the
familiar to the unknown, to prefer the tried to
the untried, fact to mystery, the actual to the
possible, the limited to the unbounded, the
near to the distant, the sufficient to the
superabundant, the convenient to the
perfect, present laughter to utopian bliss.”
Michael Oakeshott
“On Being Conservative”

19. It is easier to say
who
is a conservative rather than
what conservatism is.

20. How Conservatism differs
from other ideologies
1. Rather than being defined in terms of abstract principles of
justice, conservatism is commonly defined in relation to
changing historical contexts.
2. Conservatism can be considered more of a disposition or
temperament, rather than a strict belief system.
3. Conservatism as a belief system (if it is a belief system at
all) is marked by many internal tensions.
4. Conservatives, because of their lack of agreement over
philosophical principles, tend to unite around specific issues.
5. Conservatives, according to Charles Kessler, often find it
easier to say what they are against than what they are for.
Specifically, they often tend to oppose aspects of liberal
capitalism.

21. How Conservatism differs
from other ideologies
1. Rather than being defined in terms of abstract principles of
justice, conservatism is commonly defined in relation to
changing historical contexts.
2. Conservatism can be considered more of a disposition or
temperament, rather than a strict belief system.
3. Conservatism as a belief system (if it is a belief system at
all) is marked by many internal tensions.
4. Conservatives, because of their lack of agreement over
philosophical principles, tend to unite around specific issues.
5. Conservatives, according to Charles Kessler, often find it
easier to say what they are against than what they are for.
Specifically, they often tend to oppose aspects of liberal
capitalism.

22. How Conservatism differs
from other ideologies
1. Rather than being defined in terms of abstract principles of
justice, conservatism is commonly defined in relation to
changing historical contexts.
2. Conservatism can be considered more of a disposition or
temperament, rather than a strict belief system.
3. Conservatism as a belief system (if it is a belief system at
all) is marked by many internal tensions.
4. Conservatives, because of their lack of agreement over
philosophical principles, tend to unite around specific issues.
5. Conservatives, according to Charles Kessler, often find it
easier to say what they are against than what they are for.
Specifically, they often tend to oppose aspects of liberal
capitalism.

23. IS conservatism an ideology?

24. The public interest “is what men
would choose if they saw clearly,
thought rationally, acted
disinterestedly and benevolently.”
William F. Buckley

25. Are Buckley and other
conservatives making
Marx’s mistake?

26. Classical (Burkean)
Conservatism

27. Sir Edmund Burke

28. A reaction to the French Revolution

29. A few basic points…
• Accepted some increase in democratization,
but retained a belief in the importance of
strong authorities.
• Accepted some aspects of capitalism, but
feared that the economic liberties of
individuals posed moral dangers to the good
of society.
• Wanted to protect the world from the
onslaught of rapid social, economic and
technological changes.

30. IMPOSSIBLE!

31. slow the modernization of society
as much as possible

32. The Problem of Abstract Rights

33. the historical development of rights

34. PROBLEM:
Abstract demands for rights can
lead to redistribution of land and
money.

35. Conservatives Say:
Politics based on abstract rights
promotes individualism at the
expense of historical
understanding, mitigating
institutions and the bonds that
hold society together

36. protection of private property
provides social stability

37. Noblesse Oblige

38. Undesirable Results of
Capitalism

39. What to do?

40. Human Nature

41. human beings are, and
always will be, flawed

42. Original Sin

43. Rationality?

44. Law of Unintended
Consequences

45. Weak Rationality

46. Atomistic Individualism
Vs.
Organic/ Interconnected
Individualism

47. Social Fabric

48. Liberty worthwhile ONLY
when properly ordered

49. Government not
perceived as an obstacle

50. Conservatives & Change

51. Reckless & Rapid Change

52. Ideological Change
Change based on preconceived
ideological notions which give
no concession to the inherent
limits of the human condition.

53. The Problem of Innovation

54. An “Anti-Ideology”?

55. Reform
change that is slow,
thoughtfully considered
and based on the past

56. Conservatism and
Democracy

57. The Natural Aristocracy

58. Concentration of
Power

59. “Little Platoons”

60. 21st Century
Conservatism:
4 Strands

61. Traditional
Conservatism

62. Individualist
Conservatism

64. The New
Christian Right

66. James Dobson

67. Neoconservatism

68. Irving Kristol

69. Irving Kristol on
Neoconservatism
• Support for welfare state, opposition to
bureaucratic paternalism & intrusion
• Respect for the free market
• Support for traditional values and religion
(vs. “counterculture”)
• Opposition to “egalitarianism”
• Strong anti-communist foreign policy