How Does Bernie Show The Reputation-Bias
Jessica Watkins
Mr. Roe
English 101
10/23/14
ROUGH DRAFT Francis Bacon once said, “The human understanding when it has once adopted an opinion (either as being the received opinion or as being agreeable to itself) draws all things else to support and agree with it.” (Fischhoff, 1983). Bacon made this statement and didn’t know that in the 1960’s psychologists would be testing and analyzing this attribute prevalent in humans and naming it the Confirmation-Bias (Klayman, 1987). The Confirmation-Bias can be seen in all societies, but typically when there is a strong feeling of community and friendship. The film Bernie shows the Confirmation-Bias in action in the small town called Carthage, Texas, where the community was outraged by the accusation of murder by their most beloved men against a distasteful woman. Influences from communities as well as personal biases will often, unconsciously, alter beliefs, causing unfair analysis of evidence in order to disprove one side. Bernhardt Tiede arrived to Carthage, Texas, the “best small town in Texas”, as the assistant director of Hawthorne Funeral Home. After Getting to know Bernie, townspeople said he had a “magnetic …show more content…
Nugent before taking her out to lunch. Being her one and only friend in the community, it was very easy for him to cover up her disappearance with plausible explanations. For example, when she missed her holiday haircut, Bernie called the business and came up with a story that Marjorie was unhappy with the service and would no longer go there. It was said that it was easy for her to disappear, as nobody was ever looking for her. With power over all her bank accounts, Bernie began using her money for personal and community use. He gave money to struggling businesses and people cars. He never spent the money on himself but instead gave it to the town. Marjorie’s stock broker of many years, Lloyd, began to be suspicious of Marjorie’s disappearance (Bernie,
Mr. Roe
English 101
10/23/14
ROUGH DRAFT Francis Bacon once said, “The human understanding when it has once adopted an opinion (either as being the received opinion or as being agreeable to itself) draws all things else to support and agree with it.” (Fischhoff, 1983). Bacon made this statement and didn’t know that in the 1960’s psychologists would be testing and analyzing this attribute prevalent in humans and naming it the Confirmation-Bias (Klayman, 1987). The Confirmation-Bias can be seen in all societies, but typically when there is a strong feeling of community and friendship. The film Bernie shows the Confirmation-Bias in action in the small town called Carthage, Texas, where the community was outraged by the accusation of murder by their most beloved men against a distasteful woman. Influences from communities as well as personal biases will often, unconsciously, alter beliefs, causing unfair analysis of evidence in order to disprove one side. Bernhardt Tiede arrived to Carthage, Texas, the “best small town in Texas”, as the assistant director of Hawthorne Funeral Home. After Getting to know Bernie, townspeople said he had a “magnetic …show more content…
Nugent before taking her out to lunch. Being her one and only friend in the community, it was very easy for him to cover up her disappearance with plausible explanations. For example, when she missed her holiday haircut, Bernie called the business and came up with a story that Marjorie was unhappy with the service and would no longer go there. It was said that it was easy for her to disappear, as nobody was ever looking for her. With power over all her bank accounts, Bernie began using her money for personal and community use. He gave money to struggling businesses and people cars. He never spent the money on himself but instead gave it to the town. Marjorie’s stock broker of many years, Lloyd, began to be suspicious of Marjorie’s disappearance (Bernie,