Course Summary:
The intellectual history of right-wing movements in America since World War II has included a diverse group of theorists, writers and activists ranging from laissez-faire individualists to militant anti-communists and from cultural conservatives to libertarian anarchists. Many of these strains of thought are in conflict with each other, and over time, the fortunes of various factions within the movement have changed dramatically.
In this course, we will examine a variety of the differing schools of thought within the conservative and libertarian movements considered to be part of the conservative or right-wing intellectual traditions in America. Through an examination of these intellectual movements and factions, we will attempt to gain a new understanding of how many Americans on the right wing have viewed American domestic and foreign policy since the New Deal, and how many of these strains of thought are still relevant today. The critiques of the movement that we will consider will come from within the movement itself, and we will understand the movement by examining how those within it viewed and criticized different schools of thought. Intra-movement critiques are often the most insightful and trenchant.
What we regard as conservatism in America today is a movement that formed in opposition to the New Deal of the Roosevelt administration, but which changed significantly with the advent of the Cold War, the rise of the New Left and subsequent shifts in American cultural and political trends. This class will also attempt to assess the impact of recent economic and political crises on the American right wing today.
Required Texts:
Carey, George W. Freedom and Virtue: The Conservative/Libertarian Debate. Intercollegiate Studies Institute Press. 1998.
Nash, George H., ed. The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945. 2nd Edition. Intercollegiate Studies Institute Press. 2006.
Raimondo, Justin. Reclaiming the American Right: The Lost Legacy of the Conservative Movement. Intercollegiate Studies Institute. 2008.
Schneider, Gregory, ed. Conservatism in America Since 1930. New York University Press. 2003.
Rothbard, Murray N. The Betrayal of the American Right . Ludwig von Mises Institute. 2007 (www.mises.org/books/betrayal.pdf)
Recommended Texts:
Critchlow, Donald T. and MacLean, Nancy., eds. Debating the American conservative Movement: From 1945 to the Present. Rowman and Littlefield. 2009.
Doherty, Brian. Radicals for Capitalism: A Freewheeling History of the Modern American Libertarian Movement.Public Affairs Press. 2008.
Nash, George H. Reappraising the Right: The Past & Future of American Conservatism. 2009.
Radosh, Ronald. Prophets on the Right: Profiles of Conservative Critics of American Globalism. Cybereditions.com. 1978.
Viereck, Peter. Conservative Thinkers: From John Adams to Winston Churchill. Transaction Publishers, 2005.
Viereck, Peter. Conservative Thinkers: From John Adams to Winston Churchill. Transaction Publishers, 2005.
Course Requirements
4 Tests-These tests will be spaced throughout the semester and will be in written format. The essay tests will be take-home, and students may consult the text, the readings and notes for the take-home portion. The answers will be essays of 5 to 6 pages in length. The font may be no larger than 12-point font in a typeface similar or identical to Helvetica, Ariel or Times New Roman. Each test’s written portion will ask the student to examine a specified aspect of right-wing intellectual history and theory. Overall, each test is worth 225 pts.
Essay tests do not require the use of outside sources. However, a student may maximize his or her grade by using in-text citations to note where in the readings or in the text is featured a concept or fact that one has used in the writing of the essay.
4 Tests-These tests will be spaced throughout the semester and will be in written format. The essay tests will be take-home, and students may consult the text, the readings and notes for the take-home portion. The answers will be essays of 5 to 6 pages in length. The font may be no larger than 12-point font in a typeface similar or identical to Helvetica, Ariel or Times New Roman. Each test’s written portion will ask the student to examine a specified aspect of right-wing intellectual history and theory. Overall, each test is worth 225 pts.
Essay tests do not require the use of outside sources. However, a student may maximize his or her grade by using in-text citations to note where in the readings or in the text is featured a concept or fact that one has used in the writing of the essay.
Tests will incorporate analysis and summarization of class information while illustrating the student’s knowledge of the theorists, historical context and controversies among the varying strains of thought within the intellectual movement.
Attendance and Participation – this course includes a participation grade worth 1/10th of the overall grade (100 points). Students should come to class prepared to participate in class discussions.
Attendance and Participation – this course includes a participation grade worth 1/10th of the overall grade (100 points). Students should come to class prepared to participate in class discussions.
Grading Scale
900-1000----------A
800-899-----------B
700-799-----------C
600-699-----------D
599 and below—Fail
Tests = 900 points
Participation = 100 points
Class Schedule
Class 1: Introductions, What is American Conservatism? Historical context. Readings: Rothbard, chapters 1 and 2; Introduction chapters in Nash and Schneider. Introduction in Raimondo by Carey.
Class 2: Early precursors of conservatism. 19th-century laissez-faire thought: William Graham Sumner, Edward Atkinson and the Anti-Imperialist League. Early individualists: H.L. Mencken and Albert Jay Nock. Readings: Rothbard, chapter 3, Raimondo, Chapter 5, and the Nock reading in Schneider.
Class 3: Conservatism as opposition to the New Deal. The rise of the Old Right. John T. Flynn, Garet Garrett, and Robert Taft. Readings: Rothbard, Chapter 4, and Chapter 4, “The New New Deal” of The Roosevelt Myth by Flynn. Available online. Raimondo, Chapter 4.
Class 4: The Old Right and Foreign policy – Right-wing critics of foreign intervention. Lawrence Dennis, the America First Committee, and the entry into World War II. Readings: Chapter 5 of Rothbard and “The Rise of Empire” by Garet Garrett. Available online. Raimondo, Chapter 3. Exam #1 due.
Class 5: Conservatism after the War. “The Libertarian Revolt,” the rise of post-war Individualism, and the decline of the Old Right. Readings: Rothbard, Chapters 7-9, Nash, Chapters 1 and 2.
Class 6: The rise of National Review and the New Right. Readings: Nash, chapters 3,4,5, Rothbard, Chapter 12, the Buckley readings in Schneider, pp. 195-206.
Class 7: Conservatism as the heir to the European conservative tradition. Russell Kirk and “non-ideological” conservatism. Readings: Nash, chapters 7,8. The Kirk and Weaver readings in Schneider.
Class 8: Conservatism as anti-communism. Readings: Nash, chapters 10 and 11. Chambers and Niemeyer and “Kruschev at the UN” by Buckley in Schneider. Raimondo, Chapter 7. Exam #2 due.
Class 9: Conservatives as culture warriors. The conservative revolt against the cultural left and the beginnings of neoconservatism. Readings: Nash, chapter 8, Kirk, Weaver and McLean readings in Carey. Kristol reading in Schneider.
Class 10: Libertarians vs. conservatives. The rise of the libertarians as right-wing opposition. Readings: Rothbard, chapter 14, and the Rothbard and Meyer readings in Carey. Raimondo, Chapter 8.
Class 11: Conservatism after the Cold War: The culture war and right-wing populism. Readings: Tonsor reading and “Message from MARs” in Schneider. Raimondo, Chapter 9. Nash, Chapter 12. Exam #3 due.
Class 12: Conservatism after the Cold War, Part II. Right-wing non-interventionist foreign policy. Readings: Himmelfarb, Buchanan and “Beautiful Losers” readings in Schneider. “Dreading GOP Rule” by Llewellyn Rockwell. David Gordon’s essay in Raimondo.
Class 13: 9/11 and the end of conservative non-interventionism. Readings: “How Firm a Foundation? The Prospects for American Conservatism” by George Nash. “The Reality of Red-State Fascism” by Llewellyn Rockwell. “Unpatriotic Conservatives” by David Frum.
Class 14: The end of the Bush era: TARP, Bailouts, and the effects of The Financial Crisis of 2008 on conservative thought. Readings: “The Calamity of Bush’s Conservatism” by Llewellyn Rockwell. “Thou Shalt not Speak Ill of Bush” by Bruce Bartlett.
Class 15: Discussion: The Election of 2012. How will conservatism fare? Final exam due.
