Conformity is when people follow the authority of someone with more power and more authority. In some cases this is good. Being able to know that people fear and live under the law and understand order, but in the video we students of Prof. Bobys sociology 200 class saw was about conformity but under the authority of people who cause harm. Stanley Milgram conducted an experiment involving a teacher who would have to give electric shocks to a student (who is involved in the experiment and knows what is going on) whenever the student gets a question wrong. The experiment is a bit eery for those who have to turn the switches for the shocks. The screaming and the yelling of the student who says they are having a bad heart ache and have had been diagnosed for heart problems is all recorded on a playback, and played out loud when the student gives false answers. This test was to see how the teachers reacted and what they did when they were told to press the switches, also remember that the teachers were not forced at all, no harsh treatment was done, but persuasion that they SHOULD continue.
Stanley got the idea for the experiment to see what caused the Nazi soldiers to act in the way they did. He organized the experiment and saw that majority of them kept on going with the experiment until the recording was finished, which they thought was the death of the student. It truly is a good experiment to understand obedience. It is a good and an experiment that didn't break any rules of morality.
Now, in my honest opinion, I think it is an issue that needs to be looked at in today's time and date. If we can see, their are many issues arising where their is an authoritative person missing in charge. Take for example Egypt's power issues. Their is no authoritative figure, the one that was is getting thrown out. In time of struggle, we see issues arising, people can be misled and misused like they were when Hitler came into power. These are situations to be looked at, regardless of how good someone's morals are, they will still act under pressure and take the wrong decision. its support they lack to stand up from the pressure and act smarter and take the better decision.
People need to be able to take their own decisions, and people need to be able to be led by a leader who lets them be moral with their decisions. With the wrong authority, people won't be able to make their decisions, they will have the fear that lurks over the head, and they will choose the wrong. With the right authority, people will be more free to choose what is right and wrong, and good law and government will help ensure that people don't make those wrong decisions.
Wow, I really liked how you applied this concept to present ongoing issues. Really very interesting, because it kind of brought the issue home and allowed me see this experiment through your eyes. I like your closing paragraph because it again made me see things from a different perspective, more over authority than the individual. Thanks for sharing!
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