Post by makoval38 on Nov 16, 2011 21:33:31 GMT -5
The tyranny of consensus has always been a major problem in the American Society, seen all the way back with the Puritans and leading up to modern, twenty first century America. During many crises that communities face, a unity forms in between people who wish to only survive and those who wish to take advantage that the crisis provides. Some famous crises that America had faced throughout history which led to the formation of such a consensus were the Salem Witch trials and the McCarthy Red Scare, where people came together to form a group of people that embraced the tyrannical power that the crisis provided. Even today, when men and women are far more educated than their predecessors and understand the dangers that this consensus would incite on the community, people are still dependent on the security that the unity provides even if it endangers other people to survive or retain their position.
Men will follow the consensus even if it is immoral or endangers people’s lives in order to protect themselves from a crisis. Even in the twenty first century, when such customs are considered barbaric, people still follow the consensus rather than stand against it. Everyone has a natural instinct to survive rather then throw their lives away for the sake of others. This situation was seen during the Penn State scandal, where people failed to report to the police that Jerry Sandusky, head of the Two Miles Charity program, was abusing his power by sexually abusing children who passed through his program. Instead of protecting future victims, associates of Sandusky decided to ignore the complaints raised by people who were concerned with Sandusky’s behavior towards the children. Calhoun, a janitor working in Penn State University was also withheld information from the police because his position was only temporary and he feared to go against someone as powerful as Sandusky. The position that Calhoun found himself in was similar to the one that Mary Warren from the Crucible found herself in, because although they knew that something terrible was going on, they did not try to destroy the tyranny because of the fear they had in losing their position. The men who are guilty of withholding information from the police had formed a united tyrannical group which created a fear for men like Calhoun to do the right thing and tell the authorities of what was going on. Just like the days of the Salem witch trials, society find themselves repeating the mistakes that were done in history.
The instinct to protect oneself while endangering others is natural for all human beings and has been sighted in numerous occasions throughout history, including the twenty first century. It is unavoidable because no matter what happens, even during the Penn State scandal, there will always be people who are too afraid to go against the crowd. It has been proven throughout history that no matter what time period it is and how educated people are, it is only human nature to form tyrannies of consensus in order to survive, and that these consensuses will continue forming in the future as well. History has a tendency of repeating itself, and it is the duty for the human race to learn from their mistakes so that tyranny will not rule over anymore.
Word Count: 551
Men will follow the consensus even if it is immoral or endangers people’s lives in order to protect themselves from a crisis. Even in the twenty first century, when such customs are considered barbaric, people still follow the consensus rather than stand against it. Everyone has a natural instinct to survive rather then throw their lives away for the sake of others. This situation was seen during the Penn State scandal, where people failed to report to the police that Jerry Sandusky, head of the Two Miles Charity program, was abusing his power by sexually abusing children who passed through his program. Instead of protecting future victims, associates of Sandusky decided to ignore the complaints raised by people who were concerned with Sandusky’s behavior towards the children. Calhoun, a janitor working in Penn State University was also withheld information from the police because his position was only temporary and he feared to go against someone as powerful as Sandusky. The position that Calhoun found himself in was similar to the one that Mary Warren from the Crucible found herself in, because although they knew that something terrible was going on, they did not try to destroy the tyranny because of the fear they had in losing their position. The men who are guilty of withholding information from the police had formed a united tyrannical group which created a fear for men like Calhoun to do the right thing and tell the authorities of what was going on. Just like the days of the Salem witch trials, society find themselves repeating the mistakes that were done in history.
The instinct to protect oneself while endangering others is natural for all human beings and has been sighted in numerous occasions throughout history, including the twenty first century. It is unavoidable because no matter what happens, even during the Penn State scandal, there will always be people who are too afraid to go against the crowd. It has been proven throughout history that no matter what time period it is and how educated people are, it is only human nature to form tyrannies of consensus in order to survive, and that these consensuses will continue forming in the future as well. History has a tendency of repeating itself, and it is the duty for the human race to learn from their mistakes so that tyranny will not rule over anymore.
Word Count: 551