Conservatism: Key Thinkers

This lesson examines the key thinkers of conservatism as specified by the Edexcel A-Level Politics syllabus: Burke, Oakeshott, Rand, and Nozick.

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Edmund Burke (1729-1797)

Context

The founding father of conservatism. Wrote Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790) in response to the French Revolution.

Key Ideas

1. Tradition and the "Partnership Between Generations"

Burke: "Society is a partnership not only between those who are living, but between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born."

Existing institutions represent the accumulated wisdom of generations and should not be swept away by revolutionaries.

2. Organic Society and Gradual Change

Society is a complex, living whole. Radical change risks destroying the social fabric. Change should be gradual and evolutionary — "change in order to conserve."

3. Pragmatism Over Abstract Theory

Burke was deeply sceptical of abstract principles being applied to politics. Political decisions should be guided by experience and prudence, not ideology.

4. Hierarchy and "Natural Aristocracy"

Society benefits from a "natural aristocracy" of talent, education, and virtue. But hierarchy comes with responsibilities — the privileged must serve the common good.

5. The Dangers of Revolution

Revolution destroys social order without providing a workable alternative. The French Revolution proved this with the Reign of Terror.

Significance

Burke established the intellectual foundations of conservatism: tradition, scepticism of radicalism, organic society, and pragmatism.

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Michael Oakeshott (1901-1990)

Context

The most important 20th-century conservative thinker. Professor at the London School of Economics. Key work: Rationalism in Politics (1962).

Key Ideas

1. Scepticism of Rationalism

Oakeshott distinguished between:

• Technical knowledge — knowledge that can be written in rules.
• Practical knowledge — wisdom from experience that cannot be reduced to rules.

Rationalists mistakenly believe politics can be guided by technical knowledge alone. Good government requires practical wisdom from tradition and experience.

2. The Conservative Disposition

"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."

3. Civil Association

The state should be a civil association — providing a framework of rules within which individuals are free to pursue their own purposes — NOT an enterprise association imposing collective goals.

Significance

Oakeshott deepened conservative scepticism of rationalism. Importantly, he would view Thatcherism/neoliberalism as itself a form of rationalist ideology — attempting to redesign society according to an abstract economic theory.

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Ayn Rand (1905-1982)

Context

Russian-born American novelist and philosopher. Key novels: The Fountainhead (1943), Atlas Shrugged (1957).

Key Ideas

1. Objectivism and Rational Self-Interest

• The proper moral purpose of life is pursuing one's own rational self-interest.
• Altruism is morally wrong — sacrificing oneself for others is a form of slavery.

Rand: "The man who does not value himself, cannot value anything or anyone."

2. Laissez-Faire Capitalism

Completely unregulated free markets are the only moral economic system because they respect individual rights and reward achievement.

3. Opposition to Collectivism