Conservatism Key Thinkers

• Thomas Hobbes Human Nature - He disagreed with Locke's positive view on human nature, and outlined his own feelings in his book 'Leviathan' (1651). Hobbes believed that, if left on their own, people would make up their own opinions of what is right and wrong, but these opinions would not be the same as other people's. This would lead to war
• Thomas Hobbes - "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short"
• Thomas Hobbes State - Eventually, humans would realise that they need an authority figure to dictate what was right and wrong so that people could live in harmony. This proposed state would have to be autocratic, as, if power were dispersed, the combative state of nature would resume
• Thomas Hobbes Society - Hobbes did not believe society would be possible without an autocratic figure of authority. He believed, because no two people could agree on what is right and wrong, that it could only lead to uncertainty
• Thomas Hobbes Economy - Hobbes would have argued for a state monitored economy, as it would fit his ideas of authority overseeing everything and keeping things in-check
• Edmund Burke Human Nature - He believed that mankind was fallible and it failed more than it succeeded
• Edmund Burke State - Examples of his emphasis of being against poor treatment by the state seen for his demanded impeachment for the cruelty towards Hindustanis
• Edmund Burke State - He also believed that there was an unspoken dynamic between state and society. Therefore any change should be gradual and calculated. Again targeting the French revolution for completely reconstructing society
• Edmund Burke Society - Directly targeted the French revolution for having a utopian view of society
• Edmund Burke Society - Was against the French revolution for ripping up society. Therefore he values societies traditions and abandoning views to create a whole new society based on "philosophical abstractions" was stupid
• Edmund Burke Society - Believed in small self-sufficient societies - "little platoons"
• Edmund Burke Society - There is always going to be a ruling class in society which was inevitable and desirable, meaning there is always going to be a low class. However the ruling class has an obligation to look after the lower class. Revolts take place when the ruling class stop caring
• Edmund Burke Economy - An advocate for Adam Smith's free trade. This means that he wanted the least amount of regulation in trade. Upholding the importance of economic growth and how freedom should be allowed for the growth of the economy
• Edmund Burke - "A disposition to preserve and an ability to improve, taken together, would be my standard of a statesman"
• Michael Oakeshott - "The man of conservative temperament believes that a known good is not lightly sacrificed for an unknown better"
• Michael Oakeshott Human Nature - He argued that human nature, whilst imperfect, is not immoral. He thought that conservatives were happier than other people because they accepted this imperfection, and did not strive to be better in a way that may not be possible
• Michael Oakeshott State - He believed government's job is to "prevent the bad rather than create the good". He felt that progress was best kept organic, without government interference. He saw government only as a policing body
• Michael Oakeshott Society - Although he was against innovation within government, Oakeshott was supportive of innovation in society. He believed that it was society's job to further the progress of humanity, not the state's
• Michael Oakeshott Economy - Oakeshott would argue for a market overseen by the state, but not one in which the state is ready to jump in and help move the economy along (like in Keynesian economics). He would have had the government oversee the economy, and make sure it runs properly
• Ayn Rand - "The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities"
• Ayn Rand Human Nature - Objectivism; believed that the greatest thing for mankind was individual, selfish pursuit
• Ayn Rand Human Nature - Objectivism was highlighted in her books 'The Fountainhead', 'Atlas Shrugged', and 'The Virtue of Selfishness'
• Ayn Rand State - Believed that the true power of societies came from individuals, not the state
• Ayn Rand State - Thought that small state was best in order to safeguard human rights and the free economy
• Ayn Rand Society - Atomism; saw society as made up of individuals striving for their own ends
• Ayn Rand Society - Believed in an individual's 'right to choose' (socially liberal)
• Ayn Rand Society - Argued that there was no such thing as society, and that it was just a loosely connected web of individuals
• Ayn Rand Economy - Was a strong supporter of lassiez-faire capitalism, as it was the system that best served her atomistic view of society
• Ayn Rand Economy - Also supported New Right economic policies such as tax cuts and privatisation
• Robert Nozick - "Taxation is theft"
• Robert Nozick Human Nature - Individuals are the sole authors of their talents and abilities and should be left alone to fully actualise them. However, some security measures are needed
• Robert Nozick State - Believed that the growth of the state was the biggest thing undermining personal freedom
• Robert Nozick State - Minarchist state; one that outsources public services to private companies ('Anarchy, State, and Utopia')
• Robert Nozick State - Belief that the individual should be left alone in both the economic and social/cultural spheres (unlike New Right)
• Robert Nozick Society - The minarchist state would help set up small, self-sufficient communities where any cultural values could be exercised as they wished  - similar to Burke's "little platoons"
• Robert Nozick Economy - Believed in free-market economics, as he thought that the government should stay out of the economic sphere