Conservatism, epistemology and value
Conservatism, epistemology and value
A series of recent papers has discussed whether conservatism has a distinct set of values (substantive), or whether it consists in an attitude to shared values (adjectival). This paper argues that adjectival conservatism is a genuine type of conservatism, consistent with the Burkean tradition, in accordance with the idea that conservatism is concerned with change, and arguable using public reason. A version of adjectival conservatism derived from epistemological scepticism, consisting of a knowledge principle and a change principle, is presented. It is shown to (a) be resistant to arguments that adjectival conservatism is not a genuine type of conservatism, and (b) contain a distinct ideological programme, and not be restricted to a mere commentary on the activities of other ideologues.
conservatism, risk, scepticism, epistemology, innovation
423-440
O'Hara, Kieron
0a64a4b1-efb5-45d1-a4c2-77783f18f0c4
1 October 2016
O'Hara, Kieron
0a64a4b1-efb5-45d1-a4c2-77783f18f0c4
O'Hara, Kieron
(2016)
Conservatism, epistemology and value.
[in special issue: Conservatism]
The Monist, 99 (4), .
(doi:10.1093/monist/onw014).
Abstract
A series of recent papers has discussed whether conservatism has a distinct set of values (substantive), or whether it consists in an attitude to shared values (adjectival). This paper argues that adjectival conservatism is a genuine type of conservatism, consistent with the Burkean tradition, in accordance with the idea that conservatism is concerned with change, and arguable using public reason. A version of adjectival conservatism derived from epistemological scepticism, consisting of a knowledge principle and a change principle, is presented. It is shown to (a) be resistant to arguments that adjectival conservatism is not a genuine type of conservatism, and (b) contain a distinct ideological programme, and not be restricted to a mere commentary on the activities of other ideologues.
Text
ohara monist 31.3.16.pdf
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 15 April 2016
e-pub ahead of print date: 1 October 2016
Published date: 1 October 2016
Keywords:
conservatism, risk, scepticism, epistemology, innovation
Organisations:
Web & Internet Science
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 393303
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/393303
ISSN: 0026-9662
PURE UUID: 554c48b0-f578-4de6-a50f-951eadb99058
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Date deposited: 25 Apr 2016 15:31
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 05:31
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