Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 1975 Neo-conservatism and Educational Excellence 1918-1970 Norman Phillips Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Phillips, Norman, "Neo-conservatism and Educational Excellence 1918-1970" (1975). Dissertations. 1582. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/1582 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 1975 Norman Phillips NEO-CONSERVATISM AND EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE 1918-1970 by Norman R. Phillips A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Loyola University of Chicago in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy February 1975 ACKNOHLEDGMENTS For their many helpful suggestions, the writer would like to take this opportunity to thank the members of the dissertation committee. The members include Professor Gerald L. Gutek, chairman of the committee; Professor Rosemary V. Donatelli; Rev. Walter P. Krolikowski, S.J.; and Dean John M. Wozniak. This writer has benefited considerably from their advice and labors. i i VITA The author, Norman Robert Phillips, is associate professor of social sciences at the t1ayfair campus of the City Colleges of Chicago. A native of Chicago, he previously received the Bachelor of Arts degree from Roosevelt University, the Master of Arts degree from Northwestern University and the Certificate of Advanced Study from the University of Chicago. After some experience in the publishing field, he served as a teacher of history and the social studies in the Chicago Public High Schools from 1959 until 1963. In 1963, he became an instructor of social science at the City Colleges of Chicago. He now holds the rank of associate professor and is active on various faculty committees. During his career, he was elected to Tau Sigma Tau (college honor society), Phi Delta Kappa, and the Philadelphia Society. Among the scholarly publications that he has written are the following: 11 Biological Foundations of Hellenic Civilization. 11 r~ankind Quarterly (1967) 11 The Conservative Implications of Skepticism. 11 The Journal of Politics (1956). 11 Genetics and Political Conservatism." The Hestern Political Quarterly (1959). 11 An Historical Understanding of Conservatism. 11 The National Review (1969). Reprinted in Canadian and Japanese periodicals. "The Question of Southern Conservatism." The South Atlantic Quarterly (1955). 11 The Role of Conservatism Today." ~lodern Age (1963). iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii LIFE . iii Chapter I. THE RATIONALE . 1 II. FOUNDATIONS OF NEO-CONSERVATISM 22 III. TRADITIONALIST HUMANISM . 48 IV. POSITIVE HUMANISM . 93 V. RELIGIOUS HUMANISM- .. ·. 132 VI. THE NEO-CONSERVATIVE THEORY OF EDUCATION 148 VII. SUNMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 166 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 173 i v .. CHAPTER I THE RATIONALE Much of contemporary American educational theory is dominated by liberal and progressive viewpoints which include several varieties of unmodified and unmodified experimentalism, social reconstructionism, and current versions of Rousseauistic naturalism. Educational conser­ vatism is today very much on the defensive. This situation makes an examination of the educational implications of conservatism an espe­ cially valuable exercise. A consideration of conservative educational theory may aid in broadening the range of alternatives available to educators in dealing with educational problems. At the same time, it may enable them to see the regnant educational philosophies in greater perspective. Since both the assumptions and implications of conserva­ tism differ from those of liberalism and progressivism, the conclusions based upon those assumptions should also be different. Additional crea­ tive possibilities would thereby presumably become apparent. Specifically, this study seeks to ascertain the implications of neo-conservatism, the dominant contemporary form of conservative thought, with respect to educational values and methods of imparting these values. For the purposes of this study, values will be construed to mean goods which can act as guides and goals of human endeavor. We will be especially concerned with intellectual and moral values and with those criteria of values which neo-conservatives employ to evaluate educational outcomes. We will also consider the neo-conservative 2 recommendations that are designed to bring educational procedures in closer conformity with these standards. Essentially, this study examines the writings of representative neo-conservative writers in historical perspective. As such, it is a work of intellectual history. By analyzing neo-conservative thought, the conclusions we will reach will be based on the literature of the major theorists rather than on mere conjectures. By relating our conclusions to the various historical trends of the twentieth century, we can make important inferences concerning the causes and significance of neo-conservatism as a movement. To explain the method to be utilized, it seems advisable to first depict the author's conception of intellec­ tua 1 hi story. Intellectual history is, to begin with, a branch of history. The latter subject has usually been defined in terms of the study of the human past. The subject shou~d however be delimited further lest we include such fields as cultural and physical anthropology within history. More specifically, history pertains to the literate human past. It must be so limited because, to a large extent, the historian is trained to work with such written materials as documents, books, letters, diaries, and inscriptions. Where non-written materials are concerned, we generally rely on the services of archeologists, anthropologists, and other such specialists. Even more distinctive than the kind of material with which the historian deals is the method which he pursues. The historian views developments in relationship to the perspective of time. Thus, when de a 1i ng with ide as, he does not consider them 1.!! vacuo_ but rather in 3 relationship to the attitudes and problems characteristic of the age in which the ideas exist. The constellation of ideas which constitute the New Deal viewpoint would, for example, be considered in relationship to the particular problems of the 1930 1 s such as the Great Depression and its accompanying political unrest. A consideration of New Deal ideas in vacuo would not be considered history in the sense in which the writer has used the term because of the lack of such a time perspective. Intellectual history can be briefly defined as the application of the historical method to the study and interpretation of ideas. Three methods of approaching intellectual history can be distinguished. The first of these is the study of the ideas and attitudes of the common people as revealed through popular magazines, newspapers, comic books, and memorabilia of all sorts. To do this work effectively, the histori­ an must be a capable cultural anthropologist and sociologist as well as a competent historian. Second, there is the study of the attitudes and ideas of the dominant elites (in all the major areas of human endeavor) and of the rival minorities striving to displace them. Finally, we study those ideas which form part of the Weltanschauung of any well-educated person. To perform capably on either of the two latter levels, the historian should be acquainted with relevant branches of philosophy and sometimes with the arts as well. The first form of intellectual history is chiefly important because it pertains to matters which affect large numbers of people and through them the cultures to which the people be­ long. The second and third forms pertain to matters affecting the elites 4 ~"hich pm'lerfully influence the destiny of man and nations.l The dissertation will deal with intellectual history in the latter two senses of the term. Since conservatism has been one of the major philosophies espoused by members of many of the dominant elites of history, it would qualify for consideration by those historians who ad­ here to intellectual history in the second sense of the term. Conserv- atism would also qualify for consideration by those who adhere to intellectual history in the third sense of the term; for an acquaintance­ ship with conservative ideas has generally been deemed essential to an understanding of the political and social conflicts of the recent past. No attempt will be made to analyze the popular usage of 11 conserva- tism 11 which has been confused and often very inconsistent in character. There apparently has not been a discernible common thread in the varied ways in which 11 conservative 11 has been applied. It is hoped that this dissertation will contribute to a more precise formulation of the meaning of conservatism. This study will consider the educational implications of neo­ conservative thought by surveying those conservative writers who have done a substantial analysis of educational issues to enable us to form some conception of their general educational viewpoint. In addition, only those writers will be discussed whose writings are on a level above lThe classification of intellectual