Conservatism

When the Labour Party chose Jeremy Corbyn as its leader, Peter Hitchens wrote an article for the Daily Mail asking whether the Conservative Party could choose a true conservative leader now that the Labour Party had a true socialist as theirs. What the Conservatives had as prime minister during Corbyn’s party leadership were three leaders who are best defined as neo-liberals: David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson. Now that the Conservatives have fallen to their worst electoral defeat in history, there is much discussion in the party about getting back to their conservative roots. So, what exactly is a conservative?

Dominic Wightman’s intelligent and original examination of what conservatism is has thus arrived propitiously.

Wightman begins with an anecdote that encapsulates his argument well. He writes of his ‘battered, brown leather Chesterfield wingback armchair’ in which he likes to sit, sipping lemon green tea. It is a chair that he admits ought to be thrown out, but because he associates it with cherished and significant memories, he does not and so the home help continues to vacuum and polish it. The chair also still supports him. It is not a useless chair. Conservatism in part is that worldview. Things are conserved not because of an unemotional and utilitarian cost analysis but because of what Wightman calls ‘subjective rationality’. At the heart of that is an individual’s love for something, such as a chair, and the desire to keep it regardless of what modernisers and progressives might say. But conservatism is more than that and Wightman unfolds his vision of what it is in the following chapters with exceptional style and lucidity.

Wightman assures us that conservatism does not mean no change, but like the natural world whose seasons turn slowly, conservatives believe that slow, thoughtful change is the best way to make sound and lasting progress. He contrasts them with socialists and liberals who are in a rush to remake the world completely and who change things for progress’ sake. Their perspective is only to look forwards. But we only have to look at all the failed revolutions and reforming programmes that litter the junkyard of history to see that Wightman is right. Conservatism, on the other hand, does not disdain and neglect the past, but regards it as the only true foundation on which a future can be built. What has been done before is a guide to what ought to come next.

Conservatism is not only a style of progress whose tempo is wisely slow and reflective, but for Wightman, has distinct philosophies and policies which he summarises with the acronym CONSERVATIVE for easy recall:

• C – Capitalism
• O – Order
• N – Nation State
• S – Small State
• E – Environment
• R – Reform
• V – Values
• A – Aesthetic Appreciation
• T – Tax Responsibility
• I – Individual Liberties
• S – Secularism
• M – Military Strength

Some of these terms are self-explanatory; some are not. Wightman helpfully defines them all. Values are perhaps the hardest to envisage and again Wightman uses a mnemonic to do this using the word PROVEN:

• P – Prudence, Property, Prescription
• R – Rights, Rural, Restraints
• O – Objectivity, Obligation, Open-mindedness
• V – Verity, Validity, Veracity
• E – Equity, Errancy, Empathy
• N – Nerve, Nature, Nonconformity

The idea here is that these values have proven to be fundamental to civilisation and conservatives who rely on past ages’ wisdom ought to use them as a guide to present and future ethical matters.

If anyone needs a handily brief definition for a rapidly moving debate with conservatism’s opponents, Wightman provides that too: “Honest, effective progress built on past soundness. So, in what ways are you not a conservative?”

If Wightman’s book had ended there, it would have still made a solid contribution to resolving some of the present confusion over what it means to be a conservative. But the text continues for another twenty-three chapters packed with insights as to what it means to be a conservative now. Space does not permit me to explore the wealth of ideas that Wightman presents. There is one feature of the book that I do wish to draw the reader’s attention to and that is what Wightman intriguingly calls ‘Banzai Conservativism’ and which is the subject of chapter thirteen. This is a conservative approach I have never come across before and is one of the most original aspects of Wightman’s book.

Banzai Conservatism is the defence of society against communist revolution, hard left progressivism and the threat of theocratic absolutism. Banzai was the battle cry of Japanese infantrymen in the Second World War as they charged their enemy. It is the tactic of last resort for conservatives. It is non-violent, but it requires a focus analogous to that of an attacking army. It calls for infiltration of extreme progressive groups, seeks popular support from the grassroots up and aims to win the culture war. Wightman’s point is that conservatives can no longer be so phlegmatic about the political and social threat posed by liberal-left authoritarians and religious fundamentalists. His book is a rallying cry to all who seek to preserve what is best about Britain, or any nation, to become conservative activists. As cultural Marxism continues to infect Western minds and corrupt institutions at an alarming rate, Wightman’s book could not have been timelier.

Conservatism by Dominic Wightman, published by Hayek Publishing is available to buy on Amazon.

Peter Harris is the author of two books, The Rage Against the Light: Why Christopher Hitchens Was Wrong (2019) and Do You Believe It? A Guide to a Reasonable Christian Faith (2020).

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