MAYBE CHESTERTON'S WALL SERVES A PURPOSE:

Conservatism is not a comprehensive philosophy of reality, but "certain beliefs about the activity of governing and the instruments of government". It is the rationale of the fundamental necessity of stable and cohesive political order for human flourishing. Whilst some on the left view order as inherently oppressive and exploitative, and certain types of liberalism consider order merely as a necessary evil, conservatives recognise order as a vitally important good in itself which also makes the pursuit of all other human values possible. Order and freedom are not juxtaposed in conservatism; it is order that makes freedom itself possible.

Order in the conservative view is sui generis, infinitely complex and organic -- it is not the rational creation of a particular set of men and women at a particular time, but the sedimented wisdom of history. That complexity means conservatives have a unique reverence for the past and a corresponding scepticism, substantiated by experience, of the rational capacity of individuals to devise better forms of polity from first principles. This creates a presumption in favour of those institutions, customs and arrangements that exist and have existed for a long time. That is not to say that all things that have endured are good; such is clearly not the case. It does place the burden of proof upon the person that would seek fundamental or revolutionary change, however. 

The object of the conservative, then, is passing on inherited forms of political order that are productive of human flourishing to the next generation. This gives conservatism a particular disposition on change. It is not hostile to change; conservatives often see change as positively desirable. The purpose of change in conservatism is to improve, to reform in order to conserve -- not to bend that which exists to some abstract ideal. Conservatives worry about change that might compromise whatever makes a particular political order distinctive, which is why they generally attach such importance to repair and reform, rather than transformation. 

It is through the lens of preserving political orders which have been conducive to human flourishing that conservatives consider all other political questions. Conservatives recognise that humans are both individuals who desire self-expression, and deeply social beings too who achieve meaning and value through their relationships with others. They seek to guard against the social individuation of the political community through liberal excess, but also against the domination of the individual by the political community through an overbearing state. Solidarity and common identity are required for political orders to endure, but the whole point of political orders is to create the space and freedom in which humans might flourish. Order, then, requires the conservative to balance these two aspects of human existence; when taken to extremes, either can be deleterious. 

Conservatism values liberty as one of the things that political order is intended to facilitate, but it also recognises that complete liberty constitutes the problem which political associations are designed to overcome: namely, how do we get a collection of individuals to act together to address collective problems? Conservatives, unlike liberals, contend that liberty is one value amongst many, and they distinguish strongly between liberty and licence. 

Conservatives defend institutions, but not because they conform to some metaphysical or objective truth (although they might believe they do, their scepticism cautions them against founding a political society on such a basis). They defend them because of the role they play in sustaining political orders. They contain an inner logic that many other political creeds do not understand or attach weight to -- a historical rationality and purpose that is independent of human design, but which helps to preserve the cohesiveness of a political community by channelling change and providing markers of common identity.

Markets are a particular institution that conservatives defend robustly. They create prosperity, abundance and jobs to support society. Despite the pronouncements of certain economists, their workings are spontaneous, not necessarily consciously designed; their wisdom transcends that of individuals, which is why conservatives are habitually sceptical of the economic planner. 

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