Political Theory Part 1:Traditional Conservatism
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute

This is the first of five courses on political theory, which cover a spectrum of political ideologies (defined as organized systems of beliefs and values). The goal is to genuinely understand both sides of the Left/Right political spectrum, and to identify and clarify your own political worldview. We start in this course with Traditional Conservatism, which is the most difficult political ideology to explain and clarify. First the origin of American political order in the form of the liberal state--represented by the US Constitution--is explained. Then the Right/Left political spectrum is identified and defined in terms of political ideologies. This is followed by discussion of the works of four conservative political philosophers: Michael Freeden, Yorum Hazony, Thomas Sowell, and Russell Kirk. The entire future series of five courses will include Parts: (1) Traditional Conservatism, (2) Conservatism and Libertarianism, (3) Liberalism, (4) Moral and Cultural Foundations of the American Political Divide, and (5) AI and Political Theory.