The Effects of Groupthink

2220 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Influence of the media in public opinion

Everyday a war is being waged, not in foreign countries- but in small neighborhoods and capital cities all over the world. A timeless battle to retain individual thought and action in an increasingly conformist society. The concept of a unanimous group-thinking society can be witnessed throughout history in the form of political controversies to pop culture and trends, to subtle influences in everyday life. The short narrative “Shooting an Elephant” written by George Orwell is a perfect example of group-thinking that implicates that to be accepted into these societal groups, one must do what is right by them, and not by the individual. Throughout the narrative, the author is influenced by increasing pressures from the crowd to shoot the elephant although it goes against his own personal convictions. The author desires to be accepted into the native's lives; no longer a social outcast. However, with this desire comes the knowledge that the group may or may not be correct in their brutal quest for blood.

“Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell demonstrates one man's moralistic battle between his own belief of preservation of life against that of the crowd of natives which spur him to kill the beast. The author is incited in his actions by the large, unanimous crowd looming eagerly behind him. The sheer size of the group of Burmese natives can create an illusion of strength in numbers that can be hard to fight. The author knew, on one hand, that the conclusion to shoot the beast is immoral, however, from a social standpoint, agreement with the group meant survival in their territory. Failure to comply with what is expected could result in punishment in the form of embarrassment. The author writes “to come all that way, rifle in ...

... middle of paper ...

... 2013. Web. .

Lassila, Kathrin. "A brief history of groupthink." Yale Alumni Magazine. Jan.-Feb. 2008. Yale Alumni Publications. 28 Oct. 2013. Web..

Lickerman, Alex. "The Wisdom of Crowds." Psychology Today. 6 Feb. 2011. Psychology Today. 28 Oct. 2013. Web. .

Surowiecki, James. The wisdom of crowds: Why the many are smarter than the few and how collective wisdom shapes business, economies, societies, and nations. New York: Doubleday, 2004. Kindle edition

Orwell George. “Shooting an Elephant” English Compostition II, Writing about your world: Global Sociocultural Awareness 3rd Edition; Jacksonville Fl. 2011 Pg. Electronic book edition.

Show More
Related

  • Carol Tavris' In Groups We Shrink From Loner’s Heroics

    853 Words  | 2 Pages

    The author of the essay, Carol Tavris, seems to be very passionate about what she is writing. She has her doctorate in Psychology and has had her articles published in many well-known magazines. The intended audience of her essay is the general public. The purpose of this article is to inform the public that they need to stand out and use their own minds in a group setting instead of hiding in the comfort of their fellow friends and colleagues.

    Read More

  • Explain This Please

    609 Words  | 2 Pages

    In “Shooting an Elephant,” George Orwell has conflicting problems concerning his position when it comes to shooting the elephant. Where Orwell was stationed at, in Burmese, he found himself being treated horribly by the Burmans because they didn’t welcome the British officers in their territory. One day, an elephant is in must and stomps around a village and terrorizes the villagers. Orwell has no ch...

    Read More

  • Geroge Orwell

    1876 Words  | 4 Pages

    Orwell, George. “Shooting an Elephant.” Shooting an Elephant and Other Essays. Ed. Sonia Orwell. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1950. 3-12.

    Read More

  • Epiphany In Shooting An Elephant

    187 Words  | 1 Pages

    Although shooting the, now seemingly calm, “mad elephant” is morally wrong to George Orwell, in his narration of Shooting an Elephant, he has to do so as he is a representative, or more so a pawn, of the British authority in the occupied country of Burma. Being such, he wages a war with his inner self to seek which decision needs to be carried out. With two outcomes in mind, one being that he will be seen as a fool if he does not shoot the elephant and the other being an authority of the law by truly showing it and protecting the villagers, he has an epiphany. With such an authority, the law and someone’s moral conscience diverge. He then realizes what must be done and shoots the elephant to protect the imperialistic authority. As the excitement

    Read More

  • Shooting An Elephant Cultural Analysis

    633 Words  | 2 Pages

    George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” is a short story that not only shows cultural divides and how they affect our actions, but also how that cultural prejudice may also affect other parties, even if, in this story, that other party may only be an elephant. Orwell shows the play for power between the Burmese and the narrator, a white British police-officer. It shows the severe prejudice between the British who had claimed Burma, and the Burmese who held a deep resentment of the British occupation. Three messages, or three themes, from Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” are prejudice, cultural divide, and power.

    Read More

  • Shooting An Elephant Analysis

    801 Words  | 2 Pages

    The essay “Shooting an Elephant,” was written by George Orwell. Orwell was a British author best known for his essays and novels. In “Shooting an Elephant,” the title essay of his 1950 collection, Orwell is a British Police Officer in Lower Burma. After an elephant comes rampaging through the village in must, killing an Indian man, Orwell is looked upon to take care of the problem. The intense scene causes Orwell to make a crucial decision, reflecting on the vicious imperialism with the military in Burma during this time. The author portrays his feelings through the theme of the narrative with feelings such as, guilt, hate, and pressured.

    Read More

  • The Problem of Groupthink in 12 Angry Men

    947 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Groupthink - PsySR: Psychologists for Social Responsibility." Insert Name of Site in Italics. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Apr. 2014

    Read More

  • The Groupthink Hypothesis

    791 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1972, Irving Janis presented a set of hypothesis that he extracted from observing small groups performing problem solving tasks; he collectively referred to these hypotheses as groupthink¹. He defined groupthink as “a quick and easy way to refer to a mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members’ striving for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action²” A successful group brings varied ideas, collective knowledge, and focus on the task at hand. The importance of groups is to accomplish tasks that individuals can not do on their own. The Bay of Pigs, Watergate, and the Challenger disaster are all forms of failure within a group. Specifically, you can see the effect of groupthink of Americans before September 11, 2001. The thought of harm to the United States was unfathomable, but only after the attacks did they realize they were not invincible. When a solid, highly cohesive group is only concerned with maintaining agreement, they fail to see their alternatives and any other available options. When a group experiences groupthink, they may feel uninterested about a task, don't feel like they will be successful, and the group members do not challenge ideas. Stress is also a factor in the failure of groupthink. An effective group needs to have clear goals, trust, accountability, support, and training. Some indicators that groupthink may be happening are; making unethical decisions, they think they are never wrong, close-minded about situations, and ignore important information. Many things can be done to prevent groupthink from happening. One way is to make each person in the group a “critical evaluator”. The leader must ...

    Read More

  • Shooting An Elephant Analysis

    650 Words  | 2 Pages

    Orwell, George. "Shooting an Elephant." Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 9th ed. Vol. F. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. 2605-610. Print.

    Read More

  • Critical Analysis of Group Work

    1636 Words  | 4 Pages

    London: Tavistock Publications, Inc. BENSON, J. E. & RIVER, 1987. The 'Secondary' of the Working More Creatively with Groups? 2nd edn. of the year. London: Routledge COREY, G. COREY, M.S. CALLANAN, P.; RUSSELL, J.M. 2004.

    Read More

  • Groupthink

    975 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... that areas of expertise can be exploited, different people are good at different things. Groups can discuss material, and that discussion can improve the quality of the decision. Groups are less likely to suffer from judgmental biases that individuals have when they make decisions. People are more likely to follow through on decisions made by groups that they are connected to. Also, more monumental decisions can be made in groups, because one member will not be singled out for blame, making the entire group responsible.

    Read More

  • Group Participation and Interaction Explored in 12 Angry Men

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    Engleberg, Isa N. and Dianna R. Wynn. Working in Groups. 6th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2012. Print.

    Read More

  • George Orwell's Dilemma

    667 Words  | 2 Pages

    In George Orwell’s narrative, “Shooting an Elephant” Orwell encounters a problem in which he struggles internally with deciding on whether or not he should kill an elephant that had escaped captivity and was a harm to the community. In the end, Orwell killed the elephant and while the elephant was a danger to society, he admits that he “had done it solely to avoid looking a fool” (Orwell 499). Humans desire for social acceptance is blinding and damaging, in which we often find ourselves living through a “mask” (Orwell 496) of something that society accepts but we don’t entirely deem true. Therefore, no matter the situation an individual finds themselves in, they are all capable of using some form of cognitive function that allows them to form a decision. However, the strength of peer acceptance will outweigh their moral

    Read More

  • Communications Theory: Group Thinking

    1536 Words  | 4 Pages

    Groupthink is the communications theory that addresses, “ defective decision making on the part of a cohesive decision-making group in which loyalty to real or perceived group norms take precedence over independent, critical judgment” (Redd & Mintz, 2013). The main idea behind the theory of groupthink is that when participants in a group discussion do not want to disrupt the group, they will in turn reframe from suggesting other solutions to a problem. By not contributing other suggestions, better solutions may be overlooked and this leads to poor decision making in general. In order for the best possible solution to be found, participants in the group need to feel like they can ask questions and discuss their own personal opinions and beliefs.

    Read More

  • Critical Analysis of Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell

    848 Words  | 2 Pages

    Orwell?s extraordinary style is never displayed well than through ?Shooting an Elephant,? where he seemingly blends his style and subject into one. The story deals with a tame elephant that all of a sudden turns bad and kills a black Dravidian coolie Indian. A policeman kills this elephant through his conscience because the Indians socially pressurized him greatly. He justified himself as he had killed elephant as a revenge for coolie.

    Read More

More about The Effects of Groupthink

Open Document