Classes and thoughts
So in my sociology class we talked about conformity. There is a lot that goes under the surface, and a few videos have actually kind of opened my eyes on the subject. I'll add the links to the videos below.
Personally, I think that in Asch's (placing one test subject in a group that acts against the regular norm, and see if the test subject conforms) experiment the subjects would indeed be more willing to conform to the norm. Since the procedure is harmless, and most subjects wouldn't want to be disloyal to their group members, especially if they already have an established relationship. I believe though, although I know I might be proven wrong, that in Milgram's experiment the element of love might actually be enough to disobey the authoritative figure. On the other hand, there have been countless examples of people that have been traitors on their own family, whom they knew and perhaps loved, but in the greater picture believed to be less important than following the rule. During WWII for instance, which Milgram also used as a basis for his experiment, numbers of regular, “new Haven” style families sent their own to the concentration out of sense of duty. This isn’t the first, nor will it be the last mass-example of the truth of Milgram’s experiment.
Another one that I can think of right now is the basis for the Bhagavad Gita, a holy scripture that forms the essence of many religions in India. The prime story is about a warrior who sees his own family on the opposite side of the battlefield, and bursts out in tears because he is conflicted. His duty calls on him to fight, but the love for his family and teachers makes him want to drop his weapons and retire to the forest as a mendicant. God tells him to follow fate. God had already decided for all those other men to die, so whether or not Arjun (the warrior) was going to do it, they would die regardless. Now he simply had to continue fulfilling his duty, which was (because he was a warrior) to fight, and fight for God. This scripture is over 5000 years old now, but we’ve still seen this exact same concept arise again and again. The authoritative figure might have gone from God to the Pope, to the President or to anyone else with a little authority. As Arjun had to fight because he was a warrior, women used to have to sit at home and have children, because they were women. A stone mason’s son would become a stone mason himself. Still, to hear a woman say she doesn’t want to have children makes her sound harsh and unnatural. So often we act as culture dictates us, as we follow the duties that society drops on our shoulders.
As I read in the news recently, many women had voluntarily had sex with a police officer because he exerted his power and authority. Afterwards they decided to sue him, because they had been scared and influenced and didn’t actually act out of their own free will. The influence that authority has on us has always been there and will probably always continue to form an enormous part of our society. Personally I’ve done many things that I realized later might have been under peer-pressure. This makes me feel sad, because I always loved being my own person, thinking that I was the doer of my actions. But, you know.. recognizing your faults is the first way to accepting them.
Milgram's obedience Experiment
Candid Camera Experiment
Solomon Asch's Experiment
Personally, I think that in Asch's (placing one test subject in a group that acts against the regular norm, and see if the test subject conforms) experiment the subjects would indeed be more willing to conform to the norm. Since the procedure is harmless, and most subjects wouldn't want to be disloyal to their group members, especially if they already have an established relationship. I believe though, although I know I might be proven wrong, that in Milgram's experiment the element of love might actually be enough to disobey the authoritative figure. On the other hand, there have been countless examples of people that have been traitors on their own family, whom they knew and perhaps loved, but in the greater picture believed to be less important than following the rule. During WWII for instance, which Milgram also used as a basis for his experiment, numbers of regular, “new Haven” style families sent their own to the concentration out of sense of duty. This isn’t the first, nor will it be the last mass-example of the truth of Milgram’s experiment.
Another one that I can think of right now is the basis for the Bhagavad Gita, a holy scripture that forms the essence of many religions in India. The prime story is about a warrior who sees his own family on the opposite side of the battlefield, and bursts out in tears because he is conflicted. His duty calls on him to fight, but the love for his family and teachers makes him want to drop his weapons and retire to the forest as a mendicant. God tells him to follow fate. God had already decided for all those other men to die, so whether or not Arjun (the warrior) was going to do it, they would die regardless. Now he simply had to continue fulfilling his duty, which was (because he was a warrior) to fight, and fight for God. This scripture is over 5000 years old now, but we’ve still seen this exact same concept arise again and again. The authoritative figure might have gone from God to the Pope, to the President or to anyone else with a little authority. As Arjun had to fight because he was a warrior, women used to have to sit at home and have children, because they were women. A stone mason’s son would become a stone mason himself. Still, to hear a woman say she doesn’t want to have children makes her sound harsh and unnatural. So often we act as culture dictates us, as we follow the duties that society drops on our shoulders.
As I read in the news recently, many women had voluntarily had sex with a police officer because he exerted his power and authority. Afterwards they decided to sue him, because they had been scared and influenced and didn’t actually act out of their own free will. The influence that authority has on us has always been there and will probably always continue to form an enormous part of our society. Personally I’ve done many things that I realized later might have been under peer-pressure. This makes me feel sad, because I always loved being my own person, thinking that I was the doer of my actions. But, you know.. recognizing your faults is the first way to accepting them.
Milgram's obedience Experiment
Candid Camera Experiment
Solomon Asch's Experiment
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