Poli 120 - Ideology and Politics - Ch. 5 - 6

The doctrine that society operates best with:

1. the least intrusive government, and the

2. Minimum amount of government regulation.

The belief that government is a necessary evil and should do nothing but protect its civilians and their property.

Human beings are and always will be, deeply flawed.

The belief, in Christian theology, that the first sin---Adam and Eve's defiance of God in the garden of Eden---rendered all humanity imperfect and prone to sin.

The view that society consists of individuals who are inherently unconnected to or independente of one another. Contrast with organic view of society.

1. The view that individuals in a society are connected and interdependent; like the parts of the body

2. and that society itself is more than the sum of its parts.

An agreement to form political societies and establish governments, thus creating political authority. How do some people acquire authority over others? Some theorists such as Hobbes and Locke have answered that individuals in a state of nature have in some way entered into a social contract

A sweeping or fundamental transformation of a society. Originally used to describe an attempt to restore or revolve back to a previous condition, the word acquired its present meaning from the French Revolution.

The gradual and cautious change that corrects or repairs defects in society or government and, according to Burke, is safer and wiser than innovation.

According to Edmund Burke, a radical change for the sake of change or novelty. The desire to innovate, Burke says, leads people to neglect or reject their time tested customs. Contrast with reform.

A form of government in which power rests with elected representatives of the people, not the populace acting directly to make decisions.

According to Burke, the governing class of landed nobility, trained from childhood for the responsibilities of ruling, but one that did not exclude admission to talented members of lower social classes.

Burkes name for those traditional local organizados, such as clubs churches and neighbourhood organizations, to which individuals feel a strong attachment compared with abstract concepts such as the nation.

A belief that one class of people is superior to others. Certain rights and opportunities-- such as access to governing power--- are reserved for the exclusive enjoyment of the nobility.

Specifically the social and economic system of Europe that centered onthe relationship of the lord, who promised protection and the use of land in exchange for service, and the vassal. By analogy, feudalism refers to any agricultural society in which a relatively small number of people control the land while most others work it as tenants or serfs. Often associated with ascribed status.

Someone who wants to recreate an earlier form of society or government.

The influential philosophical movement of the 17 th abs 18 th centuries especially in France, that fought to achieve the triumph of reason and science over custom and superstition.

Closely connected to traditional or classical conservatism, a brand of conservatism critical of Commerce industry and progress because it degrades the social environment in which human beings live and destroys their cultural links with the past.

A policy initiated by British leader Disraeli, supporting voting rights and other benefits for the working class in order to forge an electoral Alliance between the upper and the working class against the predominantly middle class Liberal party.

The conservative political party in Great Britain during the 18th and early 19th centuries, succeeded by the Conservative Party. Also used to describe the Conservative Party in Canada under its different names.

A political faction in 18th and early 19th century England, usually in opposition. Many Whigs supported the American and French Revolutions and opposed the slave trade.

The conservative movement in the Roman Catholic Church, which became politically important in Quebec in the 19th century, that deferred to the leadership of the Pope in matters of politics and morality.

In theory, a self governing political unit that unites the members of a single nation or people. In practice, most existing nation states are linguistically and culturally diverse.

The form of liberalism that stresses the importance of individual human rights, such as the right to education or healthcare, and accepts as legitimate the use of government to promote positive Liberty, welfare, and equality of opportunity. Contrast with Neo-classical liberalism and business liberalism.

A group of new classical liberals of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who adapted Darwin's theory of evolution to social and political life, concluding that the struggle for survival between individuals is a natural feature of human life, and government should not intervene.

A broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating some degree of state or collective ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods, and aiming at the creation of greater economic and social equality.

A system whereby the major material forces of production are state owned. Originally used to describe any scheme of common or social control of resources, this term is now associated with Marxian socialism. For Marx and the Marxists, the communal ownership and control of the material forces of production represents the fulfillment of human history. The culmination of a long-term revolutionary sequence, a mature communist society subscribes to the principle, "from each according to ability, to each according to need. "

According to some critics, a dangerously unstable society in which the common people and the politicians and advertisers who appeal to their tastes, bring everything and everyone down to their own level abolishing traditional social hierarchies and the secondary associations that Burke calls little platoons.

An emphasis on the importance of individual rights and liberties, including the right to own private property. Contrast with people's democracy and social democracy

The effort, criticized by many conservatives, to diminish or eliminate the gap between the wealthiest and poorest members of society. Critics maintain that these efforts promote mediocrity and reduce everyone to the same miserable level.

a belief that the first aim of political action must be to preserve the social fabric by pursuing reform cautiously, when it is necessary. Burke was a traditional conservative.

The belief that government should promote individual liberty by protecting against foreign threats, but otherwise leave people alone to do as they see fit. Such a belief may be closer to neo classical liberalism business liberalism or libertarianism than other forms of conservatism.

Beginning among disenchanted welfare liberals in the 1960 s a movement advocating less reliance on government,an assertive foreign policy, and an emphasis on the value of work, thrift, family, and self restraint.

The movement of evangelical fundamentalist, such as the Christian heritage party, who seek to restore traditional family values.

The term introduced by Canadian political science Gad Horowitz in the 1960s to mean a Progressive Conservative who preferred the NDP to the Liberals. It now means a conservative who favors socially progressive policies.

1. Red Tories are sympathetic to the British elements in Canada's heritage and they are resistant to the intrusion of American politics economics and culture.


2. The support the use of the state for nation building purposes. For example Conservative government created the first transcontinental railway, Ontario Hydro: the Bank of Canada and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

3. They have doubts of whether capitalism in an unregulated form could possibly serve Canada's best interests.