Deck 2: Modern Ideologies and Political Philosophy

Question 1

The ideology of ______________________ is most associated with the following: anti-intellectual, national rebirth, strong leadership, and those disadvantaged by change.

Answer 1

fascism

Question 2

American liberalism and American conservatism are both variants of classical ________________.

Answer 2

liberalism

Question 3

St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas both wrote of the role of government in early European society. They both concluded (by different avenues) that government had a ______________ (choose either "meaningful" or "undermining") role to play in a religious society.

Answer 3

meaningful

Question 4

The most influential socialist writer was:

A) Edmund Burke
B) John Locke
C) Karl Marx
D) Thomas Hobbes
E) Carl Friedrich

Question 5

One of the great liberal thinkers was:

A) Edmund Burke
B) Karl Marx
C) Niccolo Machiavelli
D) John Stuart Mill
E) St. Augustine

Question 6

If classic conservatism is associated with the concept of power, then classic liberalism is concerned with _________________.

Question 7

The ideology that sees the highest good of society as the ability of its members to develop their individual capacities to the fullest extent is:

A) anarchism
B) conservatism
C) fascism
D) liberalism
E) socialism

Question 8

The primary change in European society that spawned LIBERAISM was the development of modern large scale _________________________.

Question 9

Classic conservative ideology emphasizes:

A) the importance of the maintenance of an ordered community and common values
B) the importance of individualism and freedom of choice
C) the importance of fiscal responsibility
D) the importance of limited government
E) the deterioration of human rights

Question 10

The type of philosophy that concerns itself with clarifying the language we use when we talk about politics is ________ philosophy.

Question 11

In Western Europe, socialists have:

A) mainly been successful in Britain
B) not been very successful in elections
C) experienced relative success but not as much as in the United States
D) participated strongly in government for many years
E) operated only in dissident roles

Question 12

Order, stability, morality, and structure are all associated with classic ___________________.

Question 13

Socialist thought sees society as consisting of:

A) individuals
B) classes
C) interest groups
D) groups
E) sects in conflict

Question 14

The thesis that people must be maximally responsible for their own actions and circumstances essentially describes _____________________.

Question 15

Which of the following was an influential conservative thinker?

A) John Locke
B) Edmund Burke
C) John Stuart Mill
D) Karl Marx
E) Denis Diderot

Question 16

During the 1930s, ________ was the dominant ideology in Spain, Germany, and Italy.

Question 17

Fascism tended to particularly appeal to:

A) modern industrial managers
B) workers
C) those who felt left behind by modern developments
D) intellectuals
E) agricultural workers

Question 18

The appearance of "ideologies" on a large scale parallels the "Age of Liberalism" when political ideas about what ought to be had added to them ideas about what people should do to make it happen.

Question 19

The belief that society equals MORE than the sum of the parts (i.e. more than simply the sum of individual interests) is characteristic of _________________.

Question 20

The newest trends toward creation of ideologies which include so-called green movements with environmental, gender, and life style themes have been labeled ______________________ ideologies.

Question 21

Classic conservative leaders in Europe have always resisted the development of the "welfare state," including social security, health, and other such protections.

Question 22

Because politics is not static, ideology also tends to absorbs new ideas and transform itself.

Question 23

"Fundamentalists" are those who believe that every word of their scripture must be accepted literally because of its god-given origin and that no other prescriptions for behavior, conduct, or leadership are possible or acceptable.

Question 24

Ideologies are often useful from an individual, political party, and government perspective.

Question 25

Some ideologies are normative and some are exclusively empirical.

Question 26

Classic liberalism was invented by intellectuals who were moved by general artistic and scientific restlessness.

Question 27

What is the relationship between the two-party system and the campaigns common in those systems and the development of American liberalism and American conservatism?

Question 28

Marx believed that the plight of workers in European society was their own fault (consistent with liberalism) and that they should recognize that and rise up to challenge those in power.

Question 29

American liberalism and American conservatism are such jumbled mixtures of ideas competing for support of pragmatic coalitions in an arena representing a very narrow range of ideas that they are generally lack strong and lasting intellectual consistency.

Question 30

American ideologies migrate consistently toward polar opposite positions on the ideological continuum.

Question 31

The core value of classic liberalism is to insure that government establishes a firm sense of community and finds a single strong platform of values on which to base that community.

Question 32

Marx predicted that a revolution of the working class in industrialized countries was inevitable.

Question 33

Critical Thinking
Clarifying things in ideological terms can be very challenging. The terms LEFT and RIGHT are classic labels for liberalism and conservatism. You can simplify your life if you focus on the key difference being the locus of power in a system or where people advocate it should be. In essence, how much of what gets decided is decided by the state or by the individual in society? Think carefully about the credible arguments that can be put for each of those positions.

Question 34

Socialism grows out of the classic liberal tradition but varies in its belief that workers who are disadvantaged in the structure of society warrant special assistance, and that society is best analyzed using class as the key element.

Question 35

How do liberalism and conservatism differ on their views of power?

Question 36

"Neoliberalism" is a new, strident form of liberalism that takes both economic and political principles of liberalism and presses for their immediate embrace by government.

Question 37

In what ways are the ideas of conservatism and socialism alike? How does the fact that they were both reactions to liberalism to some extent help explain the similarities and differences?

Question 38

Machiavelli (The Prince) and Hobbes (Leviathan) can both be described as rather cynical and non-idealistic visions of politics. They both emphasize struggle as a constant in politics.

Question 39

Religion and politics both aspire to prescribe behavior for people in society. For this reason, the connection and or competition between the two are likely.

Question 40

A classic conservative would be more comfortable with a trend toward concentration of political power than would a classic liberal.