Jim Jones Essays -- Cult Suicide Essays Papers

Jim Jones The mass suicides, that took place under the influence of Reverend Jim Jones, commode be explained from a sociological perspective. By looking at how the gathering dynamics played into the outcome one gets a better cerebration of the whys? of the massacre. The sociological explanation is but one way to explain this outrageous event. It is , however, the only one explored in this essay for reasons of concision. At one level, the deaths at Jonestown can be viewed as the product of obedience, of people complying with the orders of a attracter and reacting to the threat of force. In the Peoples Temple, whatever Jim Jones commanded, the members did. When he ga in that locationd the community at the pavilion and the poison was brought out, the populace was surrounded by armed guards who were rely lieutenants of Jones. There are reports that some people did not drink voluntarily but had the poison forced down their throats or injected. While there were isolated acts of resis tance and suggestions of opposition to the suicides, excerpts from a tape, recorded as the final exam ritual was being enacted, reveal that such dissent was quickly discharged or shouted down.Jim Jones utilized the threat of severe punishment to chat the strict discipline and absolute devotion that he demanded, and he as well took measures to eliminate those factors that might encourage resistance or rebellion among his attach toers. query showed that the presence of a disobedient partner greatly reduced the bound o which most subjects in the Milgram short letter (1965) obeyed the instructions to shock the soulfulness designated the learner. Similarly, by including just one confederate who expressed an opinion several(predicate) from the majoritys, Asch (1955) showed that the subject would also agree far less, even when the other dissenters popular opinion was also incorrect and differed from the subjects. In the Peoples Temple, Jones tolerated no dissent, made sure that m embers had no allegiance more powerful than to himself, and tried to make the alternative of sledding the Temple an unthinkable option.Analyzing Jonestown in terms of obedience and the power of the situation can help to explain why the people acted as they did. at once the Peoples Temple had moved to Jonestown, there was little the members could do other than follow Jim Joness dictates. They were comforted by an control of absolute power. They were l... ...ons consistent with the ideology and polity are wakeless. The individual conscience is not reliable.&9Under these conditions the individual expects humiliation, ostracism and punishment because of his inability to live up to the criteria and lives in a constant state of guilt and shame. Since the organization is the ultimate judge of good and evil, this guilt and shame is used to manipulate and control members. The organization becomes an authority without limit in the eyes of members and their power is nowhere more patent that in their capacity to forgive. We live in a insidious world, a world often caught in the midst of disastrous root word dynamics. Cult leaders use their knowledge to bemire the minds of unsuspecting victims. Until, deep deliriums were able to run freely in public without anything more than flimsy amusement at the dress or the ethereal spouting. There was a metre in the not so distant past that cult members were allowed to approach anyone in a place as public as an airport to share their beliefs and their tainted language. They were allowed access to our children and to our minds. It has been a long time coming, but the world is finally catching on.