Isaiah Swann
Mrs. Thompson
AP Lang / Block 1, Skinny B
22 JANUARY 2015
Publish-Ready Copy
MLK, Jr. In-Class Argumentative Essay
Martin Luther King Jr. was absolutely correct when he wrote that “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.” This concept has been proven by various psychological and social experiments. When one hears this statement, however, his/her mind automatically snaps to the battles for equality within a supposedly entirely free country during the 19th century; however, this principle is not only applicable to the civil rights movement of the mid-19th century. It can just as easily be applied to Nazi Germany as well as to human nature itself.
As Martin Luther King Jr. sat in his Birmingham jail cell writing his letter, he was facing an even larger challenge outside of the confinements of the cell. He was facing millions of people who stood together against equality. This immoral group wanted Martin Luther King Jr. to concede and give in to its will, but he never did. Why? To put it simply, he knew that nearly every person who partook in the protests against his movement only did so because he knew that he/she would not be alone in the undertaking. Dr. King knew that when groups assemble, each individual within those groups is able to release all hateful emotions that he/she would never have expressed otherwise.
A similar situation occurred in Nazi Germany throughout the 1930s, as well as throughout much of the 1940s. A man by the name of Adolf Hitler, a ruthless leader, controlled the Nazi regime—and country—during the 1930s and 1940s, and he was able to quickly turn the entire country against the Jewish population, who resided in Germany at the time. There were many individuals who assisted the Jews in their clandestine efforts to hideaway or escape under the cover of darkness; however, these people never outwardly expressed their intentions to assist the Jewish people. Instead, they joined with the larger, anti-Semitic group in order to ensure his/her safety during the time period.
This concept of “safety over suitability” was proven to ensue based upon human nature. Dr. Philip Zimbardo, a Stanford University psychology professor, conducted a series of controlled experiments, one of which perfectly supported this idea. He placed two significantly larger men in chairs alongside the test subject. Subsequently, he placed two pieces of string in front of the men and asked the men to tell him which piece was longer. The two larger men, who were aware of the experiment, chose the shorter piece of string, and the smaller man uncomfortably agreed. He reacted in this manner in order to ensure his safety; he obviously knew the correct length – just as the other two did, but he nevertheless agreed with the two men. This social experiment proved the idea that humans value their safety over their own "suitability," and therefore provided the basis for my concurrence with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s letter from a Birmingham jail cell.
In finality, I believe that Martin Luther King Jr. was correct in his claim that “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.” There is a plethora of examples throughout history, from Fascist Germany to Philip Zimbardo’s psychological experiments to the events that ultimately concluded with civil rights movements, which prove that groups are generally and more easily made to be more immoral than the individual persons that comprise the group. Nevertheless, I firmly believe that there is good in everyone, even if the groups that he/she may choose to participate in may not itself be totally moral, or righteous.
Mrs. Thompson
AP Lang / Block 1, Skinny B
22 JANUARY 2015
Publish-Ready Copy
MLK, Jr. In-Class Argumentative Essay
Martin Luther King Jr. was absolutely correct when he wrote that “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.” This concept has been proven by various psychological and social experiments. When one hears this statement, however, his/her mind automatically snaps to the battles for equality within a supposedly entirely free country during the 19th century; however, this principle is not only applicable to the civil rights movement of the mid-19th century. It can just as easily be applied to Nazi Germany as well as to human nature itself.
As Martin Luther King Jr. sat in his Birmingham jail cell writing his letter, he was facing an even larger challenge outside of the confinements of the cell. He was facing millions of people who stood together against equality. This immoral group wanted Martin Luther King Jr. to concede and give in to its will, but he never did. Why? To put it simply, he knew that nearly every person who partook in the protests against his movement only did so because he knew that he/she would not be alone in the undertaking. Dr. King knew that when groups assemble, each individual within those groups is able to release all hateful emotions that he/she would never have expressed otherwise.
A similar situation occurred in Nazi Germany throughout the 1930s, as well as throughout much of the 1940s. A man by the name of Adolf Hitler, a ruthless leader, controlled the Nazi regime—and country—during the 1930s and 1940s, and he was able to quickly turn the entire country against the Jewish population, who resided in Germany at the time. There were many individuals who assisted the Jews in their clandestine efforts to hideaway or escape under the cover of darkness; however, these people never outwardly expressed their intentions to assist the Jewish people. Instead, they joined with the larger, anti-Semitic group in order to ensure his/her safety during the time period.
This concept of “safety over suitability” was proven to ensue based upon human nature. Dr. Philip Zimbardo, a Stanford University psychology professor, conducted a series of controlled experiments, one of which perfectly supported this idea. He placed two significantly larger men in chairs alongside the test subject. Subsequently, he placed two pieces of string in front of the men and asked the men to tell him which piece was longer. The two larger men, who were aware of the experiment, chose the shorter piece of string, and the smaller man uncomfortably agreed. He reacted in this manner in order to ensure his safety; he obviously knew the correct length – just as the other two did, but he nevertheless agreed with the two men. This social experiment proved the idea that humans value their safety over their own "suitability," and therefore provided the basis for my concurrence with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s letter from a Birmingham jail cell.
In finality, I believe that Martin Luther King Jr. was correct in his claim that “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.” There is a plethora of examples throughout history, from Fascist Germany to Philip Zimbardo’s psychological experiments to the events that ultimately concluded with civil rights movements, which prove that groups are generally and more easily made to be more immoral than the individual persons that comprise the group. Nevertheless, I firmly believe that there is good in everyone, even if the groups that he/she may choose to participate in may not itself be totally moral, or righteous.