Core Ideas and Principles GapFill

Conservatism is an ideology which maintains that people are  imperfectselflessperfectflawed. As a result, there needs to be a focus on maintaining   choicescooperationpowerlaw and order in society. Conservatives seek to limit   the status quochangetraditionreform as much as possible because they consider it risky and dangerous.

There are six core ideas and principles within conservatism. The first is that it is important to take both the past and the present into careful consideration when making decisions about the future; this is known as   empiricismpragmatismtraditionan organic society. The second is a strong faith in established aspects of society such as family, morals, the Church and private property, together known as   identitytraditionan organic societythe status quo. The third is that people are self-seeking, irresponsible, and untrustworthy, known as   empiricismrealismhuman imperfectiontradition. The fourth is a belief that the world we live in has developed naturally over time and survived many challenges; this is called   the organic societyrealismthe status quotradition. The fifth is the belief that the relationship between the rulers and the ruled in society is like that between a father and his children; this is called  paternalismthe organic societylibertarianismnoblesse oblige. The sixth and final one holds that the individual is important and has the right to freedom; it is called   individualismlibertarianismhuman imperfectionpragmatism. However, this last principle applies only to   liberalismnew conservatismmodern conservatismthe New Right, and not the other branches of conservatism.