Originally posted by microwavedpizza on September 23, 2025 18:54
I think that under the right circumstances, everyone has the potential to become a perpetrator of violence against others, whether intentionally or unconsciously. The Milgram experiments (a clear example of this idea) suggest that when someone who seems to be more knowledgeable instructs us to do something and provides reassurance, we are likely to do what is asked of us. In the experiments, one man continues to deliver shocks all the way up to nearly the highest voltage despite knowing it was wrong. Afterwards, when the scheme was revealed to him and he was asked why he failed to halt, the man began to explain himself away. He took the easier way out and shifted the blame onto the instructor, communicating how he didn’t have a choice and that he was not personally responsible. I believe that even though the experiment was all planned, the man experienced cognitive dissonance knowing that he followed through with the instructions. His response demonstrates an attempt to justify himself and reduce any feelings of guilt. The fact that he couldn’t see the person he was shocking definitely played a role in his continuation as well. In a more general sense, I think that if we cannot physically see the harm we are implementing onto others, we are able to play it down. This same tactic was used during the Holocaust in gas chambers. Supporting this idea, when the experiment was conducted with the “student” and “teacher” in a closer proximity to one another, the teacher was more likely to stop. To start off one of his papers, Milgrim wrote “Obedience, as a determinant of behavior, is of particular relevance to our time,”. I find this interesting and relevant as it was written over 60 years ago and still pertains to modern life. After reading it, I question how we as a society determine who we will be obedient to. Without question, there are laws we (most of us, at least) follow such as not murdering, kidnapping, or committing arson. There is still a lot of gray area though, and I wonder how it came to be that we collectively choose who not to listen to.
It seems to me that such experiments can serve as smaller-scaled symbols that explain ordinary people’s active participation in violence, mass atrocities, and genocide. A large cause of this is the personality of the leader, as we have learned in class. Those with charisma, leadership, and confidence can manipulate groups with lower self-esteem into actions they would not typically engage in. These characteristics are not inherently bad, in fact I believe them to be largely valuable and encouraging. I see no problem with those who harbor similar personality traits. When they use them with bad intentions or to harm someone else, however, is when it becomes an issue. We like to believe that if we ever found ourselves in a similar situation, we would 100% not fall for the tactics… but then again many who are sucked in had the same mindset and when it comes to it, we can never be so sure.
I think the most compelling idea in your post is your point that “under the right circumstances, everyone has the potential to become a perpetrator of violence.” I agree with you here, because the Milgram experiment reveals how ordinary people, when pressured by authority or when they are not able to directly see the consequences of their actions, can cross lines that they themselves wouldn't expect to. I also found it interesting how you connected the experiment and the Holocaust. It highlights how small scale psychological research can help explain mass scale atrocities, which makes the relevance of the Milgram experiment clearer. Your point about proximity really stood out to me as well. The fact that people were more likely to stop when they were physically closer to the student makes a lot of sense. It makes me think about other discussions we’ve had in class about dehumanization, and how distance can make harmful actions easier to justify and reduce cognitive dissonance. My view is very similar to yours. I think I’d resist if I was placed in a situation like Milgram’s participants, but I also know that authority and social pressure play a large role in how we think, which makes me a lot less sure.