Although I would call myself a limited-government conservative, to me, mainstream conservative somewhat makes sense. Although the term “mainstream conservatism” is somewhat up for grabs, in short, I would define it as this: a view that government should have a say in moral affairs and be more hands-off in economic matters. This is why it makes sense. In general, authority figures have a role in saying what is right and wrong; examples include the church, our parents, schools, etc…
But…I am overlooking something. Let’s go back to the parents example. Parents tell us what is right and wrong, but they also provide for us. They nurture us and they try to provide a somewhat safe environment.
So, for some reason, when I think of authority, I immediately think of a type of moral authority, some guide telling me what to do and what not to do. Others, however, may think of a more nurturing, provisional figure. It’s not that we neglect on facet of authority, we may just tend to emphasize one side in our minds.
So this makes me think, do our political views come from our view of authority in general? In fact, do our political views have something to do with our family structure, or at least, our view of it?
Think of a conservative’s view of government. The government lays down the (moral) law, protects us from bad guys, and tells us to go out and get a job. Sounds like your stereotypical Dad.
Think of a liberal’s view of government. Here, the government makes sure we have what we need and is a little more permissive concerning what we do and don’t do. Does this sound like a Mom?
Stay with me here. This has nothing to do with if conservatives are manly men and liberals are girly girls or anything like that. I’m just saying that, for some reason, conservatives tend to view their ideal government as some type of father figure, whereas liberals see the government as a more nurturing mother figure.
So do our political views have anything to do with our family structure? Does the dominant parental figure affect our views?
This is just a theory, but I really don’t have anything to back it up. I consider myself a cultural conservative, but I didn’t have a strong father figure until later in my life. If I asked conservatives and liberals I knew about their family life, I don’t know if their stories would indicate any correlation between political views and dominant parental figure.
So how would libertarians figure into the equation. It’s hard to say because, unlike conservatives and liberals, their whole philosophy requires more of a compartmentalization between the institution of government and other institutions, so their experience with authority in the family structure may be less likely to affect their view of government. Or, has their experience with familial authority initiated their limited government views in the first place?
But maybe I am limiting my scope and need to expand it to other areas of authority in our life. What about the church? There is a high correlation between religious people and conservative thought, but there is also a growing number of Christian liberals, so who knows?
So am I onto something here, or am I way off?
