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A-LEVEL
PEARSON EDEXCEL
Politics
Political ideas
SECOND EDITION
Jessica Hardy
9781398318038.indd 1 05/10/21 9:35 AM

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9781398318038.indd 2 05/10/21 9:35 AM

Contents
Getting the most from this book�� 4
About this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Content Guidance
Core political ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Conservatism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Liberalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Socialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Non-core political ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Anarchism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Ecologism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Feminism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Multiculturalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Nationalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Questions and Answers

How to use this section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Conservatism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Liberalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Socialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Anarchism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Feminism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Nationalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Knowledge check answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Political ideas 3
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■ Getting the most from this book
Exam tips
Knowledge check
Advice on key points in the text to help
you learn and recall content, avoid Rapid-fire questions throughout the
pitfalls, and polish your exam technique Content Guidance section to check
in order to boost your grade. your understanding.
Knowledge check answers

Summaries
■ Each core topic is rounded
1 Turn to the back of the book for
off by a bullet-list summary
the Knowledge check answers.
for quick-check reference of
what you need to know.
Questions and Answers
■ Conservatism
Exam-style questions To what extent do all conservatives agree that human nature is imperfect?
You must use appropriate thinkers you have studied to support your answer and
consider both sides in a balanced way. (24 marks)
As with all political ideas questions, you must look at areas of agreement and
disagreement with regards to human nature. Are we rational or ruled by emotion and
Commentary on the fear? Then weigh up how significant the level of disagreement is compared to the level
of agreement in order to reach your conclusion.
questions Student A answer

A belief in the imperfection of human nature implies that we are
vulnerable, weak and potentially dangerous as a species, and that we The opening paragraph defines
Tips on what you need to do therefore require a strong state to provide security. Most conservatives
believe this and the history of conservatism has been dominated by
this view. However, the late twentieth-century development of neo-
the term in the question (AO1) and
introduces the debate clearly and
accurately, showing the areas of
to gain full marks. liberal conservatism has a different view. Like liberals, they believe
in the selfish and rational individual, whose freedom should not be
restricted by the state. Conservatives do not agree over human nature.
disagreement (AO2) and linking them to
the strands. There is a clear reference
to AO3 in the final sentence.
One-nation, traditional conservatism and, more recently, the neo-

conservative strand of the New Right are defined by the belief in
human imperfection. Most conservatives strongly agree with this
view. This involves the view that humans are first morally weak, in
that they do not have an innate sense of right and wrong and are
highly emotional and jealous, so will steal the property of others or
The opening sentence links the
Commentary on sample
commit violent acts. Second, there is the belief that the majority of
humans are not particularly intellectually able, and that they do not
fully understand the complex world that surrounds them. Finally, there
argument to the different strands of
conservatism and begins a careful
analysis of exactly what is meant
student answers
is the belief that humans are emotionally and mentally very fragile, by human imperfection (AO1). The
Read the comments showing

easily frightened and often insecure in their surroundings. Each of second sentence makes it clear that
these arguments has political implications. this paragraph is focusing on the
Sample student answers

significance of the areas of agreement
First, if humans commit crime due to psychological weakness, this (AO3) within the political idea.
means that you cannot blame circumstances such as poverty and
inequality for criminal behaviour. The individual is responsible for how many marks each answer
the crimes they commit and harsh punishments must be imposed to More on what is meant by human
Practise the questions, then deter others from doing the same. The role of the state must be to
maintain law and order. Thomas Hobbes had a very negative view
imperfection (AO1) and how it affects
the conservative view of the role of the
state and law (AO2). Useful addition of
would be awarded in the
of human nature, seeing individuals as needing strict authority as
look at the student answers otherwise they would live in a ‘state of war’.
Second, if humans cannot make sense of the wider world and are
a supporting key thinker.
exam and exactly where
Usefully links human imperfection with
that follow. often lacking in intellectual ability, they cannot understand abstract
philosophical ideas or aims. Politics should therefore be based on
other core themes of conservatism
(AO2) but with a close focus on the
question. The paragraph ends with a
marks are gained or lost.
pragmatism, looking back to the past and ‘what works’. Rapid change
is dangerous and slow reform or sticking to the status quo is judgement (AO3) that links back to the
question.
66 Pearson Edexcel A-level Politics
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About this book
■ About this book

The aim of this Student Guide is to prepare students for the Section B: Core political
ideas section of Edexcel A-level Politics Component 1, UK Politics, and the Section
B: Non-core political ideas section of Edexcel A-level Politics Component 2, UK
Government. The other sections of these two exam papers will be covered in a
different student guide.
The Content Guidance section covers all the topics largely in the order in which
they appear on the Edexcel A-level specification. You are strongly advised to have
a copy of the most recent version of the specification to refer to as you go through
the topics. There are three ideas in Component 1: Conservatism, Liberalism and
Socialism. You will need to cover all of them. For Component 2 you will study one of
the following: anarchism, ecologism, feminism, multiculturalism or nationalism.
This guide covers all of these ideas briefly, but you will study only one and it will not
be necessary to study any of the others. Each of the ideas is further divided into three
subsections. Please note that this book does not cover the Component 2 Non-core
political ideas in as much detail as the Component 1 Core political ideas due to space
constraints.
You should use the Content Guidance to ensure you are familiar with all the core
ideas and principles and the debates and divisions within each ideology. Each idea,
with its core principles, different strands and key thinkers, is studied in relation to
its beliefs relating to human nature, the state, society and the economy. It is essential
that you have a clear understanding of what these four terms mean before you start to
analyse their links to each ideology. You should also make sure you are aware of the
central arguments developed by each of the named key thinkers and link them to the
strands. The focus of all questions is the level of agreement and disagreement within
the political idea in regards to a particular area e.g. the economy. There is a series of
knowledge check questions (AO1) in this book which act as a guide to some important
information which you will need to use when answering essay questions and which
will also help to establish detailed knowledge. The answers to these knowledge
checks can be found at the end of the guide. Exam tips are designed to help you avoid
significant common errors made by students as well as guiding you towards good
practice. Key terms definitions and Linked concepts relate to the key terms named in
the specification. All the terms in the specification linked to Socialism, Conservatism
and Liberalism are covered. For the Component 2 ideologies, only some are covered.
The key terms appear in the margin in green.
The Questions & Answers section is an opportunity to hone exam technique and
to become familiar with the essay skills and structures that examiners are looking for.
The essays range in length and quality, and each comes with comments on strengths
and weaknesses so that you can use them to develop your essay writing skills. It is not
possible to provide sample questions and answers on every aspect of each ideology,
and you need to be aware that any parts of the specification could be tested in the
examination.
This guide does not go into full detail, so you must use it alongside other resources
such as class notes, textbooks such as Political Ideas for A-level and articles in Politics
Review magazine (published by Hodder Education).
Political ideas 5
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Content Guidance
Content Guidance
Core political ideas
■ Conservatism
Conservatism is an ideology that is constantly evolving and is remarkably successful
as a result. It is in opposition to change and favours protecting traditions, but it can
accept slow change if it is necessary. Most but not all conservatives believe that
humans are imperfect and vulnerable and therefore a strong government is needed to
guide and protect.
Core ideas and principles

Pragmatism
A pragmatist seeking to solve a problem turns not to fixed ideas or theories but to
practicalities — what is the most sensible and workable way to resolve this issue?
Conservatives often describe themselves as non-ideological in that they do not Ideological Relating to
believe in absolutes. Instead they advocate a ‘what works’ approach based on a set of political ideas/
circumstances and experience. This can make the ideology itself quite hard to pin body of doctrine. Most
down for students and can also suggest that conservatism is not an ideology at all but conservatives would
is merely what conservatives themselves might describe as ‘common sense’ and critics describe themselves as
might describe as advocating what might be popular in order to win elections. It also pragmatic rather than
suggests that conservatism is flexible and able to vary its values. ideological.
Linked concept
Exam tip
A pragmatic approach to politics in conservatism led to the belief in change to
preserve, despite being opposed to change. If it was necessary to preserve the Although conservatism is
status quo, e.g. by increasing the size of the electorate, this should be carried more pragmatic than other
out. (See page 7.) ideologies, it clearly does
have some core values
that you must know.
Pragmatism suggests that politics should be based on circumstances and events rather
than on ideological objectives. Conservatives reject abstract and rigid theories such as
those associated with Marxism and see them as dangerous as they are not rooted in Empiricism A rejection
history and traditions and can therefore cause chaos and instability in society. They of ideology. The theory
are supporters of empiricism. This view is linked to their rather negative view of that knowledge comes
human nature. Conservatives therefore reject all utopian ideas as they are a rejection from tradition and
of tradition, knowledge and learned wisdom. experience rather than
Despite conservatism’s claims to be a tradition rather than an ideology, it is clear that from ideas.
conservatives share a range of core beliefs, alongside some variables. These will be
explored below. So conservatism is not entirely based on pragmatism.
9781398318038.indd 6 05/10/21 9:35 AM

Conservatism
Tradition
This refers to the significance and importance of learning from previous generations
and having a connection to what has gone before. For weak and insecure humans,
tradition helps us to feel safe and to understand where we fit in. We are connected
to our ancestors and to those who will follow us in the future. This helps us form our
personal identities and to feel connections to others with shared histories and culture,
thus creating social cohesion.
For conservatives in the UK, tradition can be found in institutions such as the
monarchy, the Church of England, the House of Lords and the armed forces.
Americans could seek security in the flag, the Constitution and in celebrations such as
the 4th of July. These institutions have developed and survived over hundreds of years
and are therefore full of wisdom and should be preserved for the future. They cannot
simply be abolished and replaced as such a move would lead to dangerous instability.
Most conservatives are suspicious of change, as it goes against tradition and creates
insecurity in vulnerable and weak humans. This belief in the importance of tradition
can lead some conservatives to be suspicious of multiculturalism and immigration.
Much of the conservative view of tradition comes from the religious beliefs of many
(but not all) conservatives and can be linked to many religions, not just Christianity. Radical Far-reaching
and thorough, a major
Exam tip departure from what has
Don’t forget that not all forms of conservatism value tradition — neo-liberals are in favour gone before.
of change and are rationalists.
Change to conserve
The belief that change
However, this does not imply that all conservatives are opposed to any form of change may be necessary
but simply that change should be slow and evolutionary rather than radical, and it but should be slow,
should take place only if it is seen as absolutely necessary. So, while the Conservative evolutionary and based
Party originally opposed devolution, it now sees it as a way to protect the union. on experience in order to
Change here is a response to specific circumstances — devolution had taken place protect tradition and to
and could not be abolished — rather than something that the party initially wanted prevent social instability.
and can be described as change to conserve. Change should also be based on an
analysis of previous events, rather than for abstract reasons or utopian visions. Authority The legitimate
right to rule and to have
Linked to this faith in tradition comes a firm belief in the value and significance of power over others. This
private property. Conservatives believe that ownership gives insecure individuals right can come from
security and independence from the government, while also encouraging respect for tradition, a monarch
the law and for the property of others. Property owners are therefore more likely to be for example, or through
supportive of the status quo, fearing change might lead to a threat to their property election, such as a prime
rights. They will respect those in authority who help to protect what they own and minister.
will support the traditional family values that will allow them to pass on a legacy to
future generations. They also argue that private property is a way for individuals to Knowledge check 1
express their personality and character, for example through furnishings. This belief
What do conservatives
in the value and significance of private property is at the heart of all conservative
mean by property?
thinking and one of the few areas in which there is agreement.
Political ideas 7
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Content Guidance
Key thinkers and their ideas
Edmund Burke (1729–97)

Burke, in Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790), rejected liberal ideas,
specifically the idea of progress as desirable. He argued that inheritance and
tradition were the basis of a stable society, and that the institutions and beliefs
that form society are formed by the wisdom and knowledge of those who came
before us and must be respected. He used France — the tyranny and disaster
of the aftermath of the 1789 revolution — as an example of what happens when
you destroy this past knowledge. Burke argued for continuity — ‘change is only
necessary in order to conserve’ — and saw society as a partnership or bond
between the dead, the living and the unborn future generations rather than a social
contract between the government and the governed. These connections create
stability and security in society and create social order, preventing social chaos.
Burke, like many conservatives, also rejected the abstract ideas and theories, e.g.
rights, that developed as a result of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution.
He rejected democracy and saw inequality as natural. The people should be
represented by the elite and the wise (the same thing), who would not be delegates
but would follow their own conscience in making decisions. Burke was not a
supporter of social contract theory, which suggests that the relationship between
the government and the governed can be broken if power is abused. Society
exists to provide individuals with a link to the past and future. However, Burke
defended the Glorious Revolution and did not believe in absolute monarchy, rather
that the king should be constrained by a parliament elected by the few.
Human imperfection
Conservatives see human nature as selfish and flawed, and as emotional rather than
rational. This pessimism impacts on their view of the society and the state. First,
conservatives see human nature as psychologically weak. Due to our fragile and vulnerable
nature, we desperately seek security and this can be found in hierarchy, a social system Hierarchy A society
in which we all know our place and our roles and happily defer to the natural leaders who ordered on an unequal
will be positioned above us. This is clearly in stark contrast to the optimistic beliefs of basis, with those at the
liberals and it leads most conservatives to value order above freedom and liberty. top holding authority and
those on the lower levels
obeying those above
Linked concept them. This structure is not
A belief in hierarchy suggests a belief in authority. In order to maintain the divisions based on ability or talent.
in society there needs to be obedience to those at the top.
Our vulnerability also means that some individuals are likely to become criminals. Knowledge check 2
Unlike that of liberals and socialists, this view of human nature suggests that humans
What is meant by the
do not have a natural sense of morality. Our human nature is selfish and greedy and
doctrine of original sin?
we can have a tendency to violence. We require institutions such as the education
system, the nuclear family and the police to impose the values of right and wrong on
us. This has implications for the role and powers of the state. Without a strong state,
9781398318038.indd 8 05/10/21 9:35 AM

Conservatism
society will become unstable and chaotic. Conservatives are therefore more likely to Exam tip
blame the criminal for their actions than to see society as in any way responsible for
Although most
crime and this is linked to a focus on strict law and order policy, such as the death
conservatives see
penalty in parts of the USA.
humans as deeply
Intellectually, human imperfection implies that we cannot really understand or emotional, weak and
make sense of the complex and frightening world around us. Religious institutions seeking security, neo-
can play a part in explaining this to us and will be part of the ordered hierarchy of liberals take a different
a conservative state and society. This is also linked to the conservative rejection of view, seeing humans
abstract ideas — we will find them unsettling as they suggest change and a rejection as rational and selfish.
of learned experience. This is also linked to the
neo-liberal rejection of the
importance of tradition.
Linked concept
A belief in human imperfection suggests that change is not something that
Human imperfection
humans are able to cope with and understand. Therefore, it is better only to
The belief that humans
change to preserve, and any radical ideas must be rejected or there will be
are psychologically,
instability in society. (See page 7.)
morally and intellectually
weak and incapable of
understanding the world
Key thinkers and their ideas around them.
Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679)

Thomas Hobbes was a supporter of absolute and unlimited government, which in Knowledge check 3
his time meant monarchy. In Leviathan (1651), he argued that strong government Why do conservatives
was absolutely necessary in order to protect humans from the chaos and reject the idea of equality?
violence of the alternative — a ‘state of nature’ of ‘all against all’ where life would
be ‘nasty, brutish and short’. He believed that, left to themselves, individuals
would live in constant fear of each other. From this you can see that Hobbes
had a very negative view of human nature, seeing people as self-seeking, power
grabbing and irrational. As a result, a strong authoritarian government without
limits was needed to protect humans and without it, so-called ‘normal’ life would
be impossible. Thus government’s role was to enforce law and order. Hobbes
believed that humans would be very happy to accept this.
Hobbes was one of the thinkers who developed social contract theory. Citizens
must accept and obey the government, even a repressive one, because the
alternative would always be far worse. Hobbes therefore believed that it was
worth giving up one’s freedom and liberty in return for the protection that
only the state could provide. The contract between the citizens and the state
consisted of the citizens’ unlimited obedience in return for personal security.
However, this negative view of human nature is not fully accepted by libertarian
New Right conservatives. Not only do they advocate change, they also support
the liberal view of human rationality and have a firm belief in some ideas that
could be described as abstract, such as laissez-faire economics.
Political ideas 9
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Content Guidance
Organic society/state
The term ‘organic society’ is a metaphor that sees society as a human body. This Atomism The idea
theory is particularly linked to one-nation conservatives. Every part of the body has a that humans are self-
specific and essential part to play, and the body cannot function without it. The whole seeking and unconnected
is more than the sum of its parts and more important than any individual within it. to others. Some
If a part is changed, the body will be damaged. When they are all playing their part conservatives see human
and are healthy, the body is in harmony and will flourish. This metaphor suggests that beings as fundamentally
there must be no attempts to transform society as disaster will result. It is also closely selfish and therefore
linked to the conservative view of the importance of hierarchy — within society there society is simply a
will be various classes and groups but they can live in peace as part of a larger whole. collection of isolated
Organic society gives fragile humans a sense of security as it provides a clear role individuals.
and purpose for each one of us, depending on what part of the ‘body’ we are. It Noblesse oblige The
connects us to social groups and institutions such as the family, workplace and belief that the wealthy,
religious community, and also to the wider whole, the nation. This view of society those at the top of the
can be linked to nationalism and patriotism. This also implies that those with money hierarchy, have a duty
and power have a duty to look after those less fortunate, and it implies a rejection of to look after those less
atomism. This is called noblesse oblige. well off.
Linked concept
Atomism is linked to laissez faire. If we have no obligations to others then the
state should leave us alone as much as possible and allow us to be free. (See
page 9.) Hard paternalism
A form of government
not concerned with
There is some disagreement within conservatism over organic society. It is supported consent. The state can
by traditional conservatives, who reject individualism. However, New Right supporters step in to prevent actions
see individual rights and freedoms as more important. As Margaret Thatcher once or activities that are
famously stated, ‘there is no such thing as society, only individuals and their families’, potentially dangerous
an idea firmly rejected by David Cameron. or undesirable — for
example, banning
Paternalism smoking.
The term ‘pater’ means father and so the role of the paternalistic state is to act as an
Soft paternalism The
authoritative father figure to the weak and flawed citizens, providing for their care and
idea that government
maintaining order by regulating their behaviour. A paternalistic state is hierarchical
should act in a fatherly,
and unequal and aims to protect that status quo by preventing any uprising of the
authoritative way, looking
working classes. As a result it will include some form of welfare provision in order to
after the needs and
prevent discontent. It is a key aspect of one-nation conservatism.
regulating the behaviour
There are two forms of paternalism. Hard paternalism favours forcing people to do of citizens, but that it
things, such as giving up smoking, while soft paternalism favours persuasion and should do so with their
education. broad consent.
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Conservatism
Linked concept
A belief in paternalism means a belief in hierarchy and authority. Some are born
to rule and guide others, and deserve privileges as a result, but this role comes
with a duty to support those lower down the hierarchy. (See page 10.)
The implications of paternalism include a belief that inequality is both natural and
Knowledge check 4
desirable. Edmund Burke argued that leaders came from the ‘natural aristocracy’, and
the Victorian prime minister Benjamin Disraeli agreed, arguing that the rich had a What did Disraeli mean
duty to the poor. Linked to the belief in organic society, paternalism implies that there by describing England as
are natural leaders who will form the elite and who will act in a responsible way, as ‘two nations’ and what
they see fit, rather than acting in a representative way. This puts most conservatives was his solution?
in opposition to democracy, although as pragmatists, conservatives have adapted
to accept and accommodate democracy, where the masses can choose between a
selection of members of the elite to make decisions on their behalf.
Libertarianism (specifically neo-liberalism)

Also closely linked to liberalism, and recently seen on the banners of Donald Trump
supporters in the USA, the belief in libertarianism focuses on the need to provide
citizens with as much freedom as possible, therefore seeking to limit the role of the
government and the state. This is linked to a firm belief in the free market and is in
stark contrast to paternalism. Libertarians believe strongly in individualism, that the
individual should be entirely responsible for their actions and that individual rights to
life, liberty and property must be upheld absolutely. Law should exist purely to ensure
that individuals respect the rights of others. The state and government are potentially
a danger to individual freedom. Libertarians believe that a free market, consisting of
free individuals, unconstrained by government, will prosper.
Ayn Rand (1905–82)

A novelist whose bestsellers included The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas
Shrugged (1957), Ayn Rand focused on the importance of individual liberty.
In recent years she has been rediscovered and recently Donald Trump
announced he is a huge fan. In her novels and writings, selfishness, rather than
being seen as a character fault, is seen as a virtue and the key to personal
happiness. Altruism is interpreted as sacrificing yourself for the interests and
lives of others and therefore is irrational. Self-seeking individuals will naturally
support free-market capitalism as they will want to earn and trade as they
choose. In The Fountainhead, architect Howard Roark argues that altruism
creates dependence and ideas of the common good lead to dictatorships. He
refuses to alter or simplify the designs of his buildings.
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Rand was an atheist, calling for a ‘complete separation’ similar to that of

church and state in France. She also believed in a very limited government,
whose only role would be to protect the individual by using threats of force. In
that way Rand was not an anarchist as she did see a role for the state in terms
of police, army and legal systems. The government itself, however, has no
rights and status ‘except the right delegated to it by the citizens’.
Rand developed the idea she called ‘objectivism’, which is the highly
individualistic belief that ‘man exists for his own sake’, an idea many
entrepreneurs have found very exciting and which may explain why Trump is
such a fan.
Differing views and tensions within conservatism

Traditional conservatism
Unlike most modern conservatism, traditional conservatism is authoritarian.
Developing as a response to fears about the radical change and belief in human
equality and improvement espoused by supporters of the French Revolution and the
Enlightenment, this form of conservatism can also be linked to the rise of fascism in
twentieth-century Europe. Traditional conservatism was opposed to any of the new
reformist ideas of the eighteenth century, such as democracy and individual rights,
and is reactionary and backward looking. Its main focus is the protection of social
order and it originally represented the interest of landowners and the gentry.
Traditional conservatives uphold core values such as a belief in the importance of
tradition and custom, highlighting the bonds that hold together past, present and
future generations. Edmund Burke argued that by abandoning traditions and ‘the
accumulated wisdom of the ages’ and advocating new and abstract ideas, post-
revolutionary France would inevitably end up as more oppressive than it was before.
Often taking a rather romantic view of the past and rejecting ‘new’ ideas such as
industrialisation, traditional conservatives believe strongly in the idea of organic
society. This leads to nationalism and can also lead to regionalism or even localism.
Hierarchy is seen as the essence and core of all successful human societies and
as essential for our survival, regardless of where one sits within it. Obedience to
authority is seen as natural. French philosopher Joseph de Maistre (1753–1821),
a fervent critic of the French Revolution, argued that absolute monarchy must
be restored in France, with no changes at all to the ancien régime. Traditional
conservatism takes a very particular view of human nature, seeing humans as sinful
and greedy, motivated by selfishness and unable to comprehend the world around
them. This belief means that in order to create social stability, a strong government Exam tip
must be created and people need to come together as an organic community. Reactionary does not
mean reacting, it means
In the nineteenth century, traditional conservatives opposed new ideas such as
backward looking, or
democracy. In the twentieth century, traditional conservatism was linked to populist
wishing to return to an
regimes which moulded their policies according to the wishes of the people, such as
imagined past.
that of Juan Perón, leader of Argentina from 1946 to 1955.
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Conservatism
One-nation conservatism
Sometimes known as paternalist conservatism, this form of conservatism is often
linked to Benjamin Disraeli. A pragmatist, like most conservatives, he was prime
minister at a time when socialism was becoming more popular throughout Europe and
as a result he was keen to attract the vote of the newly enfranchised working classes
in order to prevent this. In his novels Disraeli wrote about the growing divisions
between rich and poor as a result of industrialisation and capitalism. Much more
recently, David Cameron’s ‘Big Society’ speech and some of his attempts to change the
image of the Conservative Party can also be linked to one-nation conservatism.
This form of conservatism can be seen as an attempt to bring together individualism Knowledge check 5
and collectivism and as an updated form of conservatism responding to the rise of
What did ‘Big Society’
capitalism. It shows the pragmatism of conservatism, reacting to the new forces of
mean?
democracy and capitalism by adapting its programme.
One key belief of a one-nation conservative is the idea of organic society and a
rejection of the laissez-faire approach to capitalism and individualism linked to liberal
ideas. Instead of focusing on individual rights, this approach is more collectivist in
some ways, seeing us as having duties and responsibilities to others, as part of a larger
whole. One-nation conservatives see the social inequalities and poverty created by
capitalism as the problem of all citizens, not just the poor. However, they are not
opposed to the class structure, seeing it as part of our organic society. Disraeli had
been an opponent of capitalism and was shocked by the poverty that resulted from the
industrial revolution. He saw that this could lead the working classes into the hands
of dangerous revolutionaries and socialists, so social reform was needed to protect the
hierarchy. So, reform was carried out to alleviate poverty, in order to ensure the poor
were not a threat to social order.
However, this is not socialism, and redistribution of wealth to create equality is in no
way the aim of one-nation conservatives. Instead they advocate paternalism, seeing
those at the top of the hierarchy as having a duty of care to those below. This social
obligation is sometimes referred to as noblesse oblige and could include passing laws,
such as limits to working hours, or expanding primary education. A concern for the
unemployed and the poor is a central aspect of one-nation conservatism and led to
divisions in Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative Party in the 1980s. She described those
attacking her hard-line policies as ‘wets’.
Another aspect of one-nation conservatism that is closely linked to the organic society
is a belief in patriotism and tradition. In order to prevent the division of a country into
haves and have nots, Disraeli argued that institutions such as the monarchy could be
used to unite the nations and create a sense of shared experiences. Exam tip
One-nation conservatism was strong during the twentieth century. In the UK, the Some essay questions
Conservative Party was part of the post-war consensus, accepting the need for a will ask students to
mixed economy and presenting itself as a sensible and pragmatic alternative to the examine all the strands
ideological far left and the classical liberal free market. This led conservatives such of conservatism, while
as prime minister Harold Macmillan to accept the welfare state and support ‘planned others may focus just on
capitalism’. the New Right.
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New Right
Sometimes described as the combination of neo-liberalism and neo-conservatism,
the New Right is contradictory as it contains both radical, forward-looking and
reactionary ideas and is linked to two contrasting political traditions. On the one
hand, neo-liberals believe in rolling back the state to free individuals from constraints,
while on the other hand neo-conservatives believe firmly in the importance of social
order and hierarchy. At the heart, New Right conservatives believe that the individual
must be free from state interference but that human behaviour must be restricted by
family, nation and morality. The two strands are also united by a desire to return to
a past where the state did not interfere with the economy and where people followed
strict moral codes that regulated social behaviour. Some also argue that as neo-liberal
economics will result in higher unemployment and inequality, crime and social
problems will inevitably be the consequence, therefore requiring a tougher stance on
law and order.
New Right thinking came to prominence in the UK and the USA in the 1980s as a Knowledge check 6
response to what supporters saw as the failings of Keynesian mixed-economy post-war What is meant by ‘rolling
economic policies, the electoral failure of paternalistic conservative parties, and the back the state’?
belief in a radical change in social and moral values. It is profoundly different from
other forms of conservatism for a range of reasons, one significant one being that it is
clearly ideological rather than pragmatic, believing in human rationality and abstract
theories such as the free market.
Neo-liberalism
In terms of the economy, New Right thinkers such as Robert Nozick reject one-nation
ideas of preventing the excesses of capitalism in order to help the poor. New Right
ideas developed as a reaction to the economic failings of the 1970s. In the UK, the
election of Margaret Thatcher in 1979 signalled the end of the post-war consensus,
where both major parties had broadly agreed to follow Keynesian economic policies
of intervention, progressive taxation and a mixed economy. American economist
Milton Friedman (1912–2006) argued that governments were to blame for the
economic problems of the 1970s. He argued that it was necessary to accept a level
of unemployment, and that a successful economic policy would instead focus on
inflation, which can be managed only through control of money supply. Government’s
role should be to encourage production and the way to do that would be to cut
regulation and taxes and to support entrepreneurship.
Neo-liberal economists follow the liberal ideas of the eighteenth-century Scottish
economist Adam Smith, who argued that the ‘invisible hand of the market’ should
guide economic policy. They seek a return to what they see as a golden age of
entrepreneurialism and self-help, where voluntary organisations, rather than the state,
supported the poor. This led them to support a mass programme of privatisation in the
UK in the 1980s. Neo-liberals, like classical liberals, believe that the state is coercive
and infantilising and operates in a collectivist way. They therefore have a contrasting
view of human nature to traditional and paternalistic conservatives, believing in
more liberal views of the autonomous rational individual who can manage their
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Conservatism
own affairs. The state should therefore be a minimal one, allowing free individuals
the liberty to make choices. This is also reflected in a belief that the welfare state
has created a dependency culture, and that this state must be drastically reduced
to allow individuals to manage their own affairs and stand on their own two feet.
Nozick argued that welfare itself was a violation of property rights. Thatcher famously
suggested that there was ‘no such thing as society’. Neo-liberals argue in favour of tax
cuts or even flat taxes. Neo-liberal economists argue that their policies will result in a
‘trickle-down’ effect. If the wealthy are allowed to keep more of their money, they will
make more money, employ more people and pay them better. Therefore the wealth
will ‘trickle down’ through all levels of society. This approach is also very different to
the other forms of conservatism in accepting abstract ideas like the free market and
believing in radical change, such as mass privatisation.
Neo-conservatism
Neo-conservatism, also known as conservative New Right, is a political movement
responding to the radical social changes of the 1960s and 1970s that saw the
development of what neo-conservatives would describe as permissiveness. This
movement was and still is particularly influential in the USA. Neo-conservatives Anti-permissiveness
are anti-permissiveness as they see it as individuals doing whatever they like, for The rejection of the view
example getting divorced or having children outside of marriage. This therefore poses that individuals should be
a challenge to authority and hierarchy, which are central to conservative thought. able to make their own
Permissiveness, linked to the changing social norms of the 1960s, is blamed for rising moral choices, e.g. to
crime, divorce rates and increased rates of sexually transmitted diseases. For example, choose to have as many
the rise in the number of single-parent families is considered responsible for what is sexual partners as they
seen as a decline of deference, leading to anti-social behaviour. would like.
Linked concept
Anti-permissiveness is linked to human imperfection. If humans are weak and
selfish, permissiveness is inappropriate. We are unable to make moral choices
and do not understand morality. (See page 8.)
Neo-conservatives can be described as social authoritarians, believing that due to

the frailty and insecurity of human nature, we need strong discipline from above.
Inequality is seen as natural and desirable, a belief held by all conservatives. In
contrast to neo-liberalism’s reduced role of state, neo-conservatives believe that there
needs to be a limited but strong state in relation to law and order, with increased
numbers of police, for example. They are also supporters of traditional family values,
favouring the nuclear family as the best way to bring up children, for example, with
some arguing that this family type should be protected through the tax system,
therefore using the state to encourage a particular set of moral views.
Neo-conservatives also oppose multiculturalism and immigration, seeing these
as weakening national unity and patriotism. As a result, they are sometimes also
xenophobic and can support aggressive foreign policy.
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Michael Oakeshott (1901–90)

Oakeshott, like Burke, rejected ideology and the idea that there are ‘correct’
answers to practical questions. He criticised the idea that politics can be
organised on a rational basis based on abstract principles such as equality
due to the limits of human understanding. He attacked rationalism as an idea
that placed theory above knowledge, culture and tradition. Instead, Oakeshott
argued that politics should be about practical knowledge and pragmatism,
rather than ideas and theories that ignore the complexities of human society
and tradition. He saw reform as tending to consist of a break with the past,
when it was always better to try to create continuity. Creating something ‘new’
was usually a mistake and a failure. Oakeshott blamed the Enlightenment for
the rise of the belief in rationality as the method of making political decisions.
He argued that politics should be a ‘conversation, not an argument’, therefore
rejecting the idea of absolutes.
In ‘On Being Conservative’ (1962, in Rationalism in Politics and Other Essays)
Oakeshott compared a society with too much personal freedom to a ship lost
at sea — restless and without direction and order. Politicians can be seen as
the officers on the deck, guided by experts but heading for disaster.
Robert Nozick (1938–2002)
Nozick was a free-market libertarian who argued in Anarchy, State, and Utopia
(1974) that humans own themselves. By self-ownership (Nozick referred to
individuals as ‘self-owners’) he meant that individuals have the moral right to
keep what they produce and should not be obligated or forced to give those
resources to others. They also have the right to act in any way they choose,
even if that means harming themselves, e.g. by smoking. Nozick was strongly
opposed to egalitarianism, arguing that individuals must be free to do what
they wish with their own resources. Whatever the outcome of this is, regardless
of inequalities, it is a just one. A belief in equality of outcome will always result
in unjust state interference in people’s lives and is always collectivist rather
than individualist, focusing on common goals and seeing the individual as
unimportant.
The state’s role should therefore be limited to that of police, defence and the
administration of courts. Other tasks traditionally undertaken by governments
could be carried out more effectively by voluntary organisations or religious
bodies on a free-market/competitive basis. This would be less wasteful and
would prevent the growth of unnecessary bureaucracy. This very minimal state
is similar to that favoured by some classical liberals, and Nozick is sometimes
characterised as such. Progressive taxation and other forms of state
interference are rejected as they use the individual to achieve a higher moral
outcome, when individuals are ends in themselves.
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Conservatism
Summary
Conservatism is a mixture of pragmatism and principle, but arguably it does
have a set of shared values which means that it is clearly a single ideology. The
key areas of agreement and disagreement are:
■ Human nature All conservatives argue that human nature is imperfect,
limited intellectually and security-seeking. Therefore, authority is more
important than individual freedom. Pragmatism is favoured rather than
abstract ideas, which are difficult for us to comprehend. However, neo-
liberals have a more positive view as they see human nature as rational and
therefore people are more able to manage their own affairs.
■ Society Most conservatives agree that society is organic and naturally
hierarchical. We all have a role to play within society, and we need traditional
structures to create a sense of belonging and safety. Inequality is both
desirable and natural, and rapid change should be avoided. However, New
Right conservatives take a more atomistic view and individualistic approach
and see humans as self-reliant. They also believe that change in society is
desirable.
■ State Conservatives favour a strong state and hierarchy and see this as
naturally arising. There are born leaders in society, and we need moral
guidance from them with clear rules and punishments for breaking them.
New Right conservatives have a more classical liberal viewpoint and favour
limited government and individual freedom in some, but not all, areas of life
(they favour strong law and order for example).
■ Economy All conservatives believe in the importance of private property.
It creates identity, pride, respect, hierarchy and security. However, while
traditional and one-nation conservatives favour some intervention to protect
the poor and needy (and to prevent upset to the status quo), New Right
conservatives prefer a self-help and laissez-faire approach and do not wish
to intervene in the free market.
Conservatism is an incredibly adaptable and successful ideology. In the UK,
the Conservative Party has arguably dominated British politics for the past 100
years and looks set to continue to do so.
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■ Liberalism
Core ideas and principles
Liberalism developed in the eighteenth century as a result of the revolutions in
America and France that overthrew autocratic monarchies and the development of the
capitalist system. It can also be linked to the nineteenth-century development of the
nation-state.
Individualism
Individualism is at the core of liberal theory. It suggests that the individual should
be at the centre of political thought and must always take priority over any group.
Individualism stands in opposition to collectivist theories such as socialism. This
belief leads liberals to be very concerned to limit the power of the state and is also Egoistical
linked to the idea of foundational equality — that every person is born of equal individualism
value and therefore, regardless of ability, should receive equal rights. This is the Connected to classical
Enlightenment idea of foundational equality, which challenges the conservative idea liberalism, this suggests
of natural hierarchy. that humans are egoistical
Liberals believe that human nature is essentially rational and that individuals are and self-seeking and put
capable of making their own moral judgements and controlling their own destiny. themselves before others.
Although selfish, rationality means that we understand that reason, rather than Developmental
force, should be used to resolve conflicts. This should result in peace and progress in individualism
society. The liberal view of human nature is a much less negative and pessimistic one Connected to modern
than that of conservatism. liberalism, this suggests
However, liberals have two differing interpretations of individualism. Classical liberals that true freedom is the
favour the idea of egoistical individualism, the selfish individual who seeks only ability to achieve goals
his or her own pleasure. This suggests a self-sufficient sovereign individual, who owes and potential and that this
nothing to anyone else. Modern liberals developed the theory of developmental connects humans, so that
individualism, which focuses on the ability to flourish and achieve your potential. if some people are not
This may involve some form of state intervention to ensure that you are able to do free, no one is.
this. Modern liberals such as T. H. Green have argued that individuals can also have
common goals with others in order to achieve self-realisation.
Knowledge check 7
What is the difference
Linked concept between egoistical
A belief in individualism and the idea that society should be focused around the and developmental
needs of the sovereign individual clearly leads to the view that each individual individualism?
should be free and without restraint to make life choices. (See page 19.)
Freedom/liberty
Knowledge check 8
Freedom is the core liberal belief and central to liberals’ arguments over the role of
What is meant by the term
the state. It is also closely linked to individualism and the aim for each human to have
‘atomism’?
control over their own destiny.
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Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
SHIPS
OF THE SEVEN SEAS
CHAPTER I
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SHIPS
I MAGINE the world without ships. Mighty empires that now exist
and have existed in the past would never have developed. Every
continent—every island—would be a world alone. Europe, Asia, and
Africa could have known each other, it is true, in time. North and
South America might ultimately have become acquainted by means
of the narrow isthmus that joins them. But without ships, Australia
and all the islands of all the seas would still remain unknown to
others, each supporting peoples whose limited opportunities for
development would have prevented advanced civilization. Without
ships the world at large would still be a backward, savage place,
brightened here and there with tiny civilizations, perhaps, but limited
in knowledge, limited in development and in opportunity. Without
ships white men could never have found America. Without ships the
British Empire could never have existed. Holland, Spain, Rome,
Carthage, Greece, Phœnicia—none of them could ever have filled
their places in world history without ships. Without ships the
Bosphorus would still be impassable and the threat of Xerxes to
Western civilization would never have been known. Greater still—far
greater—without ships the Christian religion would have been limited
to Palestine or would have worked its way slowly across the deserts
and mountains to the South and East, to impress with its teachings
the Arabs, the Assyrians, the Hindoos, and the Chinese.
Ships have made the modern world—ships have given the white
man world supremacy, and ships, again, have made the English-
speaking peoples the colonizers and the merchants whose
manufactures are known in every land, whose flags are respected all
around the globe, and whose citizens are now the most fortunate of
all the people of the earth.
All of this we owe to ships.
Far back before the beginnings of history lived the first sailor. Who
he was we do not know. Where he first found himself water-borne we
cannot even guess. Probably in a thousand different places at a
thousand different times a thousand different savage men found that
by sitting astride floating logs they could ride on the surface of the
water.
In time they learned to bind together logs or reeds and to make
crude rafts on which they could carry themselves and some of their
belongings. They learned to propel these rafts by thrusting poles to
the bottoms of the lakes or rivers on which they floated. They
learned, in time, how to make and how to use paddles, and as
prehistoric ages gave way to later ages groping savages learned to
construct rafts more easily propelled, on which platforms were built,
to keep their belongings up above the wash of the waves that
foamed about the logs.
And ultimately some long-forgotten genius hollowed out a log with
fire, perhaps, and crude stone tools, and made himself a heavy,
unwieldy canoe, which, heavy as it was and awkward, could still be
handled much more readily than could the rafts that had served his
forbears for perhaps a hundred centuries.
And with this early step forward in the art of ship-building came a
little of the light that heralded the approaching dawn of civilization.
AN EGYPTIAN BOAT OF 6000 B. C.
This drawing was made from what is probably the most ancient
known record of a ship. The high bow and stern seem somewhat
overdone, and it is likely that they were less elevated than this
picture shows them. The carving from which this was taken,
however, exaggerates them still more.
The very first pages of recorded history tell us of ships, and we

know that many prehistoric men were adept at building such boats
as dugout canoes. In Switzerland many signs have been found of a
people who dwelt there in the Stone Age, and among the simple
belongings of this people of great antiquity have been found canoes
hollowed from single logs. In the bogs of Ireland, and in England and
Scotland similar dugouts have been occasionally found, which had
been buried in the course of time far below the surface of the
ground.
By the time the Stone Age came the dugout was perfected, and
still later other types of boats appeared. Perhaps the hollowed log
suggested the use of the curved bark of the tree as a canoe, and
ultimately a framework of wood was developed to hold the weight of
the occupant while a covering of bark kept out the water. The
framework was necessary for two reasons—first, to give the
structure the necessary strength to keep its shape; and second, to
bear the weight of the builder and his belongings. Other coverings,
such as skins and woven fabrics covered with pitch, came into use in
parts of the world where suitable bark was scarce.
The next step in the building of boats was a method of fastening
pieces of wood together in suitable form. This probably came from a
desire for boats of larger size, which required greater strength, for
man early became a trader and wished to transport goods. Bark
could not support a heavy hull, and dugouts are necessarily limited
in size, being constructed of the trunks of single trees, although
dugouts fifty or sixty feet in length, or even longer, are not unknown.
Probably the earliest boats of this new type were tied together by
thongs or cords. Even to-day the natives of Madras, in India, build
boats by this method, and similar types are to be found on the Strait
of Magellan, on Lake Victoria Nyanza in Central Africa, and in the
East Indies. Many of these have been very highly developed until
now they are built of heavy hand-hewn boards fitted together with
ridges on their inner sides, through which holes are bored for the
thongs that lash them together. The boards are fastened together
first, and later a frame is attached to the interior. This construction
makes a very “elastic” boat which bends and twists in a seaway, but
which, because of this “elasticity,” is able to navigate waters that
would prove fatal to the more rigid types of crudely constructed
boats. The Hindoos often use them in the heavy surf that drives in
upon the beaches from the Bay of Bengal.
A LARGE EGYPTIAN SHIP OF THE 18TH DYNASTY
The overhanging bow and stern were common on most early
Egyptian ships, and the heavy cable, stretched from one end of the
hull to the other and supported on two crutches, was used to
strengthen these overhanging ends.
The introduction of this construction made boats of considerable

size possible, and for the first time boats larger than anything that
could possibly be called a canoe were successfully floated.
From this form a further step was ultimately made in which the
various parts were fastened together by the use of wooden pegs,
and this was the most advanced type long centuries after the dawn
of history. The Nile was navigated by such boats at the height of
Egypt’s civilization, and Homer describes this type of boat as the one
in which Ulysses wandered on his long and wearisome journey
home.
While the art of boat-building had been travelling this long, slow
way, the art of propulsion had not been idle. Long since, the simple
pole of the early savage had lost its usefulness, for men soon
learned to navigate waters too deep for poles. The paddle followed,
and was perfected to a very high point, as its use in all parts of the
world still testifies.
But further means were still to come, and by the time Ulysses
started on his journey from the fallen city of Troy, both the sail and
the oar, which for three thousand years were to be supreme as
propelling forces, had come into use.
In Ulysses’s boat, therefore, we see for the first time a combination
of structural features and propelling agents that compare, remotely
though it may be, with ships as they are to-day. A built-up structure
with a framework, propelled by sails—it was an early counterpart of
the ships of the present time.
Naturally enough this development did not take place
simultaneously in all parts of the world. The most advanced
civilizations such as those of Phœnicia, Greece, and China
developed the most advanced ship-building methods, just as they
developed the most advanced arts and sciences and thought and
religion.
For instance, when Columbus discovered America a vital factor in
the development of ships was entirely unknown to the natives that he
found. No Indian tribe with which he or later explorers came in
contact had learned the use of sails to propel the canoes they almost
universally used. Civilizations of surprising worth, with art and
architecture in high stages of advancement, had existed and had
practically disappeared in Yucatan and Central America, and other
civilizations of genuine attainment were later found, by Cortes and
Pizarro, in Mexico and Peru, yet none of them knew the uses of the
sail.
On the other hand, the Egyptians and the Phœnicians used the
sail, and twenty-five centuries before the discovery of America the
Phœnicians are thought to have sailed their ships around the
continent of Africa from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.
But while the art of ship-building progressed more rapidly after the
development of the use of wooden pegs for fastenings, and the use
of sails and oars made possible more extended sea journeys, still
the development was slow, and until the discovery of the power of
steam in the latter part of the 18th Century no revolutionary changes
in ships took place.
Just when the method originated of first constructing the frame of
the ship and of covering this frame with planks, we do not know, but
the transition from the method in use at the time of Homer was
simple and the change was probably gradual.
A PERUVIAN BALSA
These “boats” are really rafts made of reeds.
It seems possible that the built-up boat may have had its origin in
the attempt of some savage to raise the sides of his dugout canoe by
the addition of boards in order to keep the water from harming his
goods.
But all of the history of boats up to the time of written history is
necessarily mostly surmise.
It is interesting to note, however, that every one of these basic
types is still to be found in use. In Australia, for instance, are to be
found savages whose boats are nothing but floating logs, sharpened
at the ends, astride of which the owner sits. Rafts, of course, are
common everywhere. Dugout canoes are to be found in many lands,
among which are the islands of the Pacific and the western coast of
Canada and Alaska. The birch-bark canoe is still common among
the Indians of America—particularly of Canada; the skin-covered
boat is still used commonly by the Eskimos, two types, the kayak, or
decked canoe, and the umiak, or open boat being the most common.
I have seen the latter type used also by the Indians who live on
Great Bear Lake in northern Canada.
Boats fastened together with thongs or lashings are numerous in
parts of India and elsewhere, the Madras surfboats being, perhaps,
the best examples.
Boats built up of planks fastened together by pegs are to be found
in many parts of the world. I learned to sail in a boat of this type, but
very much modernized, on Chesapeake Bay. The other methods,
very much perfected, are still in everyday use among boat- and ship-
builders.
Thus it will be seen that some knowledge of all these various types
may still serve some useful purpose, for one may find in everyday
use all the fundamental types of construction that have ever existed.
AN AFRICAN DUGOUT
In this boat the builders have hollowed out the log but have
not otherwise changed it. It is a present-day counterpart of
boats known and used long before the dawn of history.
One type of boat I have not mentioned, yet it is of time-honoured

ancestry and is still in daily use among thousands of people. This is
the outrigger canoe. In different parts of the world it has different
names. In the Philippines, for instance, it is called, in two of its forms,
vinta and prau. These boats have one thing in common, and that is
an outrigger. An outrigger is a pole made of bamboo or some other
light wood, floating in the water at a distance of a few feet from the
boat itself. It is held rigid and parallel to the hull by two or more cross
bars. Sometimes there is an outrigger on each side but often there is
only one. On the smaller boats the outrigger consists of a single
pole. On larger boats, or those which are inclined to be particularly
topheavy because of the load they are intended to carry, the size of
the sail, or for some other cause, several poles may make up each
outrigger. The use of this addition is to secure stability, for the boats
to which they are attached are usually extremely narrow and alone
could not remain upright in the water, or at best could not carry sail in
a seaway, where the combination of wind and wave would quickly
capsize them. These outrigger canoes—and some of them are
capable of carrying forty or fifty passengers—are extremely
seaworthy, and the native sailors do not hesitate to take them for
hundreds of miles across seas often given to heavy storms. In the
development of ships, however, they play no part, for their only
unique characteristic has never been incorporated into ships of
higher design.
It is interesting that while all the cruder types of boats are still to be
found in daily use in various parts of the world, the more highly
developed designs, up to those of the 17th Century, have
disappeared. Many of them, it is true, have influenced later designs,
but most of the marks they left can be traced only with great difficulty.
The earliest boats of which we have definite records are those that
were in use in Egypt about 3000 B. C. Some of these were of
considerable size, for carvings on tombs and temples show them
carrying cargoes of cattle and other goods, and show, too, on one
side, as many as twenty-one or twenty-two, and in one case twenty-
six, oars, besides several used for steering. Many of these boats
were fitted with a strange sort of double mast, made, apparently, of
two poles fastened together at the top and spread apart at the
bottom. These masts could be lowered and laid on high supports
when they were not needed to carry sail.
The boats themselves seem to have been straight-sided affairs
with both ends highly raised, ending, sometimes, in a point and
sometimes being carried up into highly decorated designs that at the
bow occasionally curved backward and then forward like a swan’s
neck. The end of this was often a carved head of some beast or bird
or Egyptian god. On the boats intended for use as war galleys the
bow was often armed with a heavy metal ram.
AN ESKIMO UMIAK
This boat is structurally similar to the kayak except that it has no
deck. It is a larger boat, and will carry heavy loads and perhaps as
many as a dozen people. It is made by covering a frame with skins.
These ships—for they had by this time grown to such size that
they are more than canoes or boats—often extended far out over the
water both forward and aft, and any concentration of weight on these
overhanging extremities had a tendency to strain the hull amidships.
This was offset, as it sometimes is to-day on shallow draft river
boats, by running cables from bow to stern over crutches set
amidships.
While the Egyptians were the first to picture their ships, it is not
certain that they were the first to have ships of real size and sea-
going ability, for the very temples and tombs on the walls of which
are shown the ships that I have described have also the records of
naval victories over raiders from other lands who must have made
the voyage to the Egyptian coast in order to plunder the wealth of
that old centre of civilization.
The Egyptians, however, were never a sea-going people in the
sense that the Phœnicians were. But strange as it may be, the
Phœnicians, despite the fact that they probably invented the
alphabet, did not make the first record, or, as a matter of fact, any
very important records, of their great development in the ship-
building art. The earliest picture of which we know of Phœnician
ships is on the wall of an Assyrian palace and dates back only to
about 700 B. C. which was after the Assyrians had conquered the
Phœnicians and had for the first time (for the Assyrians were an
inland people) come in contact with sea-going ships.
By this time the Phœnicians had had many years of experience on
the sea, and the Assyrian representation shows a ship of more
advanced design than the Egyptians had had.
There are few records, however, from which we can gain much
knowledge of Phœnician ships, although we know they ventured out
of the Mediterranean and were familiar with the coasts of Spain,
Portugal, France, and even England, where they went to secure tin.
And as I mentioned earlier, they may even have circumnavigated
Africa, and it seems likely that they invented the bireme and the
trireme, thus solving the question of more power for propulsion.
A bireme is a boat propelled by oars which has the rowers so
arranged that the oars overlap and form two banks or rows, one
above the other. A trireme is similar except that there are three
banks. With this arrangement a boat may have twice or three times
as many rowers (in these old boats there was never more than one
man to an oar) without lengthening the hull.
To the Greeks we owe the first detailed accounts of the art of ship-
building and of ship construction. In early Greek history the vessels
were small and were usually without decks, although some of them
had decks that extended for part of their length. They carried crews
that ranged up to a hundred or more, and, in the democratic fashion
of the early Greeks, they all took part in the rowing of the ship, with
the possible exception of the commander. At this early period great
seaworthiness had not been developed, and there are many
accounts of the loss of ships in storms and of the difficulty of
navigating past headlands and along rocky coasts. Later, Greek
ships cruised the Mediterranean almost at will, but ship design and
construction had first to develop and the development took centuries.
Even in those days there was a marked difference between the
ships intended for commerce and those intended for war. The war
vessels—and the pirate vessels, which of course were ships of war
—were narrow and swift, while the ships of commerce were broad
and slow: broad because of the merchant’s desire to carry large
cargoes, and slow because the great beam and the heavy burdens
prevented speed.
AN ESKIMO KAYAK
These small canoes are made of a light frame covered with skins.
During the period at which Athens reached her prime the trireme,
or three-banked ship, was the most popular. As a matter of fact, its
popularity was so great that its name was often given to all ships of
the same general type whether they were designed with two, three,
four, five, or even more banks of oars.
These many-oared ships reached a very high state of perfection
during the supremacy of Greece, and the most careful calculations
were made in order to utilize every available inch by packing the
rowers as closely together as was possible without preventing them
from properly performing their tasks.
The rowers, as I have suggested, sat in tiers, those on each side
usually being all in the same vertical plane, and the benches they
used ran from the inner side of the hull to upright timbers which were
erected between decks, slanting toward the stern. That is, in a ship
with three banks of oars, three seats were attached to each of these
slanting timbers and the footrests of the rower occupying the
topmost seat were on either side of the man who occupied the
second seat in the next group of three. The vertical distance
between these seats was two feet. The horizontal distance was one
foot. The distance between seats in the same bank was three feet.
I have gone into some detail in describing this arrangement, for
rowers—and from the later days of Greece on they were generally
slave rowers—were the motive power of ships for three thousand
years or more, and for more than a thousand years the many-
banked ship was supreme.
A BIRCH-BARK CANOE
In many parts of the world savage people have learned to build
light frames over which they have stretched the best material
available to them. The Indians of North America commonly utilize
birch bark.
Imagine these toiling galley slaves, chained in hundreds to the

crowded rowing benches, straining at the heavy oars. Tossed by the
seas, they labour unceasingly, stroke on stroke, to the sound of a
mallet falling in never-changing cadence on a block of wood. Hour
on hour they strain, heartened occasionally by a few minutes’ rest.
Their eyes are all but blinded by the sweat from their grimy brows.
Their hands are calloused, their bodies misshapen from long toil on
the rowers’ benches. Above them, on the wind-swept deck, they
hear the clank of armed men, the slap of sandalled feet. A lookout
calls to the officer in command—hurried steps—momentary silence
—shouts and the sound of feet. A messenger appears in the stifling
space below. The sharp clap of the mallet on the block increases its
cadence. Faster and faster swing the oars. Furious and more furious
is the pace. A whip in the hands of a brutal guard falls here and there
on the naked backs of the helpless, straining forms. Their strength is
waning, their breath is coming fast. A man collapses from the strain
and pitches from his elevated seat, half suspended by the chain
around his leg, his oar trailing and useless. From beyond their
wooden walls they hear the muffled clank of the oars of the
approaching enemy.
Cries from on deck, and suddenly a crash. Broken oars are driven
here and there. Screams and oaths and orders and a great
upheaval. Water enters in a score of places. More screams—more
oaths—cries for help to a score of pagan gods—the water covers all.
A great last sigh and one more ship is gone: it is just a tiny incident
in the history of ships.
As I have said, the Greeks developed marine architecture to a
very high point, and the bireme and trireme with which they began
were the first of a long series of developments until ultimately ships
of five, of eight, of even sixteen banks of oars are said to have been
in use, and there is a story, which probably was a figment of
someone’s imagination, of a vessel of forty banks! Such a ship may
possibly have been suggested—may conceivably have been built—
but it seems certain that she could never have been successful or
practical.
Carthage, that great enemy of Rome, was a city of traders—a city
that depended on the sea for its wealth and, to a large extent, even
for its sustenance. Rome, on the other hand, grew to considerable
size without venturing on the sea. When she did first turn her
attention to the water, as her continued expansion forced her to do,
she found that Carthage crossed her course whichever way she
turned. The result was war.
But war between two cities separated by the width of the
Mediterranean had to be fought largely on the sea, and Rome,
inexperienced as a sea-going nation, was put to a severe test.
By chance, however, a Carthaginian quinquireme—that is, a five-
banked ship—battered by storm and abandoned by her crew, drifted
ashore on the sunny coast of Italy, and the Romans, quick to see the
importance of the happening, hauled her high and dry, measured
her, and learned from her battered hull the lessons they needed to
know of ship construction.
AN OUTRIGGER CANOE
Sometimes these canoes have an outrigger on each side, and
sometimes they carry sails.
They built on dry land sets of rowers’ seats, and while they taught
rowers to pull their oars in unison in these unique training benches,
they set to work with the energy that marked Rome out for great
success. Sixty days after they had felled the trees, they had a fleet of
quinquiremes afloat and manned.

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Questions and Answers

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■ Getting the most from this book

Knowledge check answers

Questions and Answers

questions Student A answer

One-nation, traditional conservatism and, more recently, the neo-

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Sample student answers

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■ About this book

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Core ideas and principles

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Key thinkers and their ideas

Edmund Burke (1729–97)

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Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679)

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Libertarianism (specifically neo-liberalism)

Key thinkers and their ideas

Ayn Rand (1905–82)

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Rand was an atheist, calling for a ‘complete separation’ similar to that of

Differing views and tensions within conservatism

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Neo-conservatives can be described as social authoritarians, believing that due to

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Key thinkers and their ideas

Michael Oakeshott (1901–90)

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