How the Human Mind Rationalizes Evil
How the Human Mind Rationalizes Evil
My name is Rayna Gerakian – but I’m known as Rayna Barton. My grandfather, George Gerakian of Armenian descent, changed his last name to Barton for fear of living in constant scrutiny because of his parents’ heritage. But he should be proud. His father was a survivor. Although studied far less in today’s culture the Holocaust, the Armenian Genocide was highly influential in creating conditions for it. Genocide is the systematic killing and deportation of a certain race, and the massacre of the Armenians is considered the first modern genocide of the 20th century. My ancestors died at the hands of the Young Turk government. Generations later, the Turkish government still does not officially acknowledge the genocide.
After reading the book “How We Decide” by Jonah Lehrer about the human mind and its decision-making tactics, I sought to examine the act of genocide through the psychology of the act.
What drives a person to commit mass murder? How does one follow the command to commit mass genocide? In times of war, what drives a person to commit unspeakable acts, and in this case, against Armenian civilians of the Ottoman Empire? In numerous studies done by neurologists and researchers of all statures, evidence has shown that social pressure can drastically change what we deem acceptable – especially in situations while faced with a question of morality versus obeying an authority figure.
Eric Hoffer, author of “The Passionate State of Mind” said, “Our sense of power is more vivid when we break a man’s spirit than when we win his heart.” Unfortunately, this is exactly what can be inferred from studying the act of genocide. We can decipher from historical events, big or small, that mankind desires power and control, and I’ve stood by that fact since writing an angry essay during the modern European history AP exam my sophomore year in high school. The greed and thirst for power has driven some of us to
My name is Rayna Gerakian – but I’m known as Rayna Barton. My grandfather, George Gerakian of Armenian descent, changed his last name to Barton for fear of living in constant scrutiny because of his parents’ heritage. But he should be proud. His father was a survivor. Although studied far less in today’s culture the Holocaust, the Armenian Genocide was highly influential in creating conditions for it. Genocide is the systematic killing and deportation of a certain race, and the massacre of the Armenians is considered the first modern genocide of the 20th century. My ancestors died at the hands of the Young Turk government. Generations later, the Turkish government still does not officially acknowledge the genocide.
After reading the book “How We Decide” by Jonah Lehrer about the human mind and its decision-making tactics, I sought to examine the act of genocide through the psychology of the act.
What drives a person to commit mass murder? How does one follow the command to commit mass genocide? In times of war, what drives a person to commit unspeakable acts, and in this case, against Armenian civilians of the Ottoman Empire? In numerous studies done by neurologists and researchers of all statures, evidence has shown that social pressure can drastically change what we deem acceptable – especially in situations while faced with a question of morality versus obeying an authority figure.
Eric Hoffer, author of “The Passionate State of Mind” said, “Our sense of power is more vivid when we break a man’s spirit than when we win his heart.” Unfortunately, this is exactly what can be inferred from studying the act of genocide. We can decipher from historical events, big or small, that mankind desires power and control, and I’ve stood by that fact since writing an angry essay during the modern European history AP exam my sophomore year in high school. The greed and thirst for power has driven some of us to
Cited: Fromm, Erich. “Disobedience as a Psychological and Moral Problem.” Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum: Brief Edition. 3rd ed. Eds. Laurence Behrens and Leonard J. Rosen. New York: Pearson, 2009. 245-250. Lehrer, Jonah. "The Moral Mind." How We Decide. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. 167-95. Print. Milgram, Stanley. “The Perils of Obedience.” Current Issues and Enduring Questions. 7th ed. Boston: Bedford-St Martin’s, 2005. 883-95. Waller, James. "Explanatory Model of Extraordinary Human Evil." Perpetrators of Genocide: an Explanatory Model of Extraordinary Human Evil. 1st ed. Vol. 1. Spokane, WA: Gonzaga University Institute for Action Against Hate, 2002. 18-21. Print. Zimbardo, Phillip. “The Stanford Prison Experiment.” Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum: Brief Edition. 3rd ed. Eds. Laurence Behrens and Leonard J. Rosen. New York: Pearson, 2009. 233-44.