1. Conservatism
Dr. Christopher S. Rice

2. What IS a conservative?

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

11. Conservatism as a
distinctive political position

12. Classical Conservatives
vs.
Individualist Conservatives

13. Divisions run deep…

14. 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.

15. 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.

16. “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”

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

18. 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.

19. 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.

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. IS conservatism an ideology?

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

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

24. Classical (Burkean)
Conservatism

26. A reaction to the French
Revolution

27. 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.

28. IMPOSSIBLE!

29. slow the modernization of
society as much as possible

30. The Problem of Abstract Rights

31. the historical development of rights

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

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

34. protection of private property
provides social stability

35. Noblesse Oblige

36. Undesirable Results of
Capitalism

37. What to do?

38. Human Nature

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

40. Original Sin

41. Rationality?

42. Law of Unintended
Consequences

43. Weak Rationality

44. Atomistic Individualism
Vs.
Organic/ Interconnected
Individualism

45. Social Fabric

46. Liberty worthwhile ONLY
when properly ordered

47. Government not
perceived as an obstacle

48. Classical Conservative Model of Freedom
(Ball and Dagger, Political Ideologies and the Democratic Ideal)
OBSTACLE:
Radical ideas,
innovation;
passions,
desires, lack of
restraint
AGENT: GOAL:
Inter- Order, stability,
connected, harmony,
“organic” continuity
individuals

49. Conservatives & Change

50. Reckless & Rapid

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

52. The Problem of Innovation

53. An “Anti-Ideology”?

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

55. Conservatism and
Democracy

56. The Natural Aristocracy

57. Concentration of
Power

58. “Little Platoons”

59. 21 Century
st
Conservatism:
4 Strands

60. Traditional
Conservatism

61. Individualist
Conservatism

63. The New
Christian Right

66. Neoconservatism

68. 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

69. Contemporary
Conservatism

70. 4 Main Problems:
• Failure of Western foreign policy to
promote the interests of the “free
world.”
• Promotion of socialist domestic
problems by increasingly strong
central governments.
• Prominence/power of radicals,
social engineers, socialist utopians in
educational institutions.
• Culture of permissiveness, relativism

73. Strong
Anti-Communism

74. Moral Hazards of Great
Society

75. Problem of Big
Government

76. Deregulation
+
financial incentives

77. Strengthen the Traditional
Family

78. Boy, those universities
sure are bad, huh?