Analysis Of If Hitler Asked You To Electrode A Stranger, By Philip Meyer
The article “If Hitler asked you to electrode a stranger, would you? Probably” by Philip Meyer discusses the Milgram experiment that took place in the 1960’s at Yale University. The experiment was designed to test obedience to authorities of higher power and how they can transform and individual to do things they could never do, without being pushed past their moral limits. I do believe that people today still value conformity and obedience to authority as they did in Milgram’s time. When people are placed under certain pressure or there is some kind of reward involved, there is no saying what someone is actually capable of. If Milgram’s experiment was to take place again I believe he would see the same results. Milgram’s experiment was initially
created to explain the horrors of concentration camps of WWII, where Jews, homosexuals and others were slaughtered by Nazis. Although Milgram did not take it to the extreme of war situations, he wanted to know how far an individual would go when an authority figure ordered them to cause harm onto another human being. Would these people actually go against their own beliefs? Milgram explains that ordinary people commit acts of cruelty because in his experiment although some people may have had their doubts about not proceeding with the electrical shock, they still did it anyways because they were told “they needed to continue”. In the article by Phillip Meyer he states that 65 percent of American men aged 20-50, ordinary people just like you and I, obediently kept pushing the levers all the way to 450 volts. Near the end of the article Phillip Meyer quotes Kurt Vonnegut Jr. who says “If I had been born in Germany, I suppose I would have been a Nazi”. In my opinion I feel as though Vonnegut is stating that he would not have been a Nazi by choice, but it would have been forced upon him. This captures the essence of Milgram’s experiment because it makes him no different than the people who had been pushing the buttons on the shock generators, who were commanded to do so. Another experiment similar to Milgram’s was the Stanford Prison Experiment done by Phillip Zimbardo. His experiment involved a group of individuals who were split into two groups. The two groups consisted of people who were going to act out as guards and prisoners of a prison system. The experiment was shut down six days after, this was because it became more than just role playing. These individuals starting taking these roles and making it a part of who they were. Both experiments share similarities in how certain influences have an effect on an individual. When it comes to social experiments it sometimes becomes shocking at the results you can come across. Even the most humane people can go against their own judgement for the satisfaction of others, under certain circumstances. Social influence still plays a big role in society today.
created to explain the horrors of concentration camps of WWII, where Jews, homosexuals and others were slaughtered by Nazis. Although Milgram did not take it to the extreme of war situations, he wanted to know how far an individual would go when an authority figure ordered them to cause harm onto another human being. Would these people actually go against their own beliefs? Milgram explains that ordinary people commit acts of cruelty because in his experiment although some people may have had their doubts about not proceeding with the electrical shock, they still did it anyways because they were told “they needed to continue”. In the article by Phillip Meyer he states that 65 percent of American men aged 20-50, ordinary people just like you and I, obediently kept pushing the levers all the way to 450 volts. Near the end of the article Phillip Meyer quotes Kurt Vonnegut Jr. who says “If I had been born in Germany, I suppose I would have been a Nazi”. In my opinion I feel as though Vonnegut is stating that he would not have been a Nazi by choice, but it would have been forced upon him. This captures the essence of Milgram’s experiment because it makes him no different than the people who had been pushing the buttons on the shock generators, who were commanded to do so. Another experiment similar to Milgram’s was the Stanford Prison Experiment done by Phillip Zimbardo. His experiment involved a group of individuals who were split into two groups. The two groups consisted of people who were going to act out as guards and prisoners of a prison system. The experiment was shut down six days after, this was because it became more than just role playing. These individuals starting taking these roles and making it a part of who they were. Both experiments share similarities in how certain influences have an effect on an individual. When it comes to social experiments it sometimes becomes shocking at the results you can come across. Even the most humane people can go against their own judgement for the satisfaction of others, under certain circumstances. Social influence still plays a big role in society today.