Individualism

The foundation of conservative political philosophy is the idea of individualism. Simply put, individualism favors the freedom individuals over collective or state control. Individualism says that the rights and freedoms of the individual are more important than the goals of the collective. The rights of the individual cannot be sacrificed for the sake of the collective.

When I hear others talk about individualism, I often feel that the philosophy is misunderstood. In fact, I myself used to be confused about this core conservative idea. Many seem to confuse individualism with isolationism. They believe that individualists are sad and lonely people, who are anti-community. However, individualists are not anti-community. A community is of great benefit to all the individuals involved. Individualism only means that your rights are not to be violated by the community or by another individual.

All Equal

The greatest summation of the concept of individualism can be found in the Declaration of Independence. “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal...”. Before you point out that this excludes women, I will point out that in this case “men” is supposed to be gender-neutral here. All humans are equal. Every gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion; criminals and upstanding citizens; every age, including the unborn.

We are equal in many ways. First off, we are all equal in essence. Philosophers debate the essential nature of humanity, but we all intuitively know what makes a human. Second, we are equal in rights. The aforementioned statement of the Declaration goes on to list just a few of our basic rights to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. I will describe more about what rights are in the next post.

We all have equal rights, and my rights do not take precedence over your rights. If you violate my rights, you have opened yourself up for reciprocation. Finally, because we all have equal rights, we are all equal before the law. That means, in court, I should have the same shot at justice as a rich person or a person of a different ethnicity.

Collectivism

Individualism stands opposed to the philosophy of collectivism. Collectivism says that the goals of the collective are more important that the rights of the individual. Collectivism has led to many atrocities throughout human history. Consider slavery, and how the slaves right to liberty was violated by the collective of slavery supporters, who felt the institution was necessary for their economy.

The Nazis also declared that whole groups of people didn't possess the right to life. Racism is always a form of collectivism, because it sees people in terms of groups (“races”), instead of as individuals. Finally, communism denies citizens the right to private property, in the name of benefiting the collective.

Illustration: Civil War

One of the greatest illustrations of individualism versus collectivism can be found in Captain America: Civil War. The story is written to highlight the differences between the two philosophies. Captain America beautifully embodies individualism. He believes signing the Sokovia Accords is a violation of his right to follow his conscience. He is not a lone-wolf isolationist, but instead teams up with other heroes (Team Cap) who believe as he does.

Team Iron-Man is very much on-the-nose with spelling out how evil collectivism is. Even Black Widow says at one point [paraphrased] “How we stay together is not as important as the fact that we stay together.” Think about the implications of that statement. Team Iron-Man must bully others into getting their way, all in the name of “safety”. In the end, Cap says that the core of what he believes in is individuals... which is the essence of individualism, conservatism, and America.