Sonia Lyakhovich 04/20/20 #19 Sophomores 2020
Aim: How does “Chapter 7” (of Animal Farm) portray the psychology of memory and authority??
Do Now: THINK/PAIR/SHARE
What makes for a good leader? What qualities or attributes are associated with a good leader? Is there a point/degree in which a leader must forge ahead through their vision; despite the cost(s)? What cost is too great? How do you know?
Our class discussed what makes a good leader, some of the attributes we came up with were that a leader should be an individual and not a follower, should form their own opinion, they should also be smart, brave, charismatic, honest, have good morals, and maintain promises and discipline. However, the people who tend to come to power usually do not follow all of these characteristics. In my opinion, the main characteristic should be someone who can keep control of the people they are in charge of because without order, there is no structure in society.
In addition, our class discussed to what lengths a leader should go to when trying to achieve their goal. The conclusion most people came to was that even if there are some costs, a leader should be true to their word, to a certain degree. The point to which a leader should stop is when their actions go against the principles and morals of the society, going through with their promise puts people in danger or if the stability of the society will be compromised.
How was memory portrayed in Animal Farm?
In Animal Farm, memory is manipulated like in the example of the rules of the farm. The animals of the farm remember some rules and take what Napoleon says as a fact, so when he twists the rules to his liking, he convinces them that the rules have not changed. In addition, the way that Napoleon was able to twist the events of the battle in order to make Snowball appear as if he was working for the humans, by saying his fleeing was clearly a sign of how he tried to make the animals lose the fight.
Another example of how memory is portrayed is how the animals remember the symbols of the rebellion. Old Major, along with the song Beasts of England, serve as a reminder of the successful rebellion and what the animals were fighting for.
How about authority?
Authority is portrayed in Animal Farm through how the animals hold control. Mr. Jones used to have authority on the farm, until the animals rebelled and the pigs took control on the farm. Pigs are on a power trip, taking over the farm and using dogs to hold control. The reason that they can maintain authority is because they implement consequences for anyone who goes against Napoleon, as well as rewards for getting things done well. Incentives like greater rations, as well as building a mill, make the animals continue to follow authority.
Enrichment: Authority & Milgram Experiment
The point of the experiment was to find out why evil things occur such as the Holocaust. Deeds like these are almost unspeakable, so why did the majority obey?
A fake experiment was set up with an experimenter, teacher(subject) and learner (actor). The person in charge of the experiment told the subject that they were testing how punishment and learning were related. The “learner” had to memorize word pairs and would be punished if they were wrong using shock. The "voltage of the shocks" (the actor would only pretend to be shocked) would increase with each one. The point of this was to see how far people would go. 65% of participants went up to the maximum shock, while all went up to 300V.
This raised the question when and do we obey? One explanation is that it is a survival advantage to work together. In the past when hierarchies formed, the brain underwent a shift in mindset. When people have this shift they no longer feel responsible for their actions and enter an agentic state. People enter the hierarchies of family, school, work because of punishment for not being a part of it, but also the rewards, like having a support group, learning new things, and getting paid. People in charge present appropriate demands, so u willingly accept the word of superiors. When this happens, you no longer feel responsible. Leaving such a hierarchy can be difficult because the brain wants consistency, and admitting one wrong deed done under the influence of authority will make you feel guilty for all of the deeds done.
CLASS DISCUSSION
What makes for a good leader?
Authority- even if ur a bad leader your followers will follow you
Confident- your followers will continue to trust you because of your confidence
For example, in Animal Farm, propaganda and manipulation of memory are used by Snowball. He uses the fear of Jones to come back as well as deception of events that occurred to keep his power.
Enrichment
How reliable is your memory? | Elizabeth Loftus
Memories can often be altered in a person's mind. This happens every time time we call it up, it changes slightly. In the Lost in the Mall experiment, a group of people were asked to talk about when they got lost in the mall and write about it every single day. These descriptions would change from day to day and some people, who have never been lost in a mall, created an entire story despite it never occurring. This shows how easily that memories can be manipulated. This can make it easy for someone who is trustworthy or in power to alter events that happened as you remember them. This can be seen in the way Napoleon in Animal Farm is able to turn the animals against Snowball and have them believe lies which he came up with.
Reflection:
I learned that people in power can use manipulation of memory to keep their control and that we as people tend to follow authority, for the greater good, or evil. These concepts can be applied to politics, such as how the government keeps their authority and how we should be careful and pay attention to the manipulation of memories by the government. In addition, it could also be applied to our daily lives, such as people in power like doctors, teachers, and parents as they too do have authority over us. It is important to learn about this so that we do not just blindly follow what we are told and so that we can better understand why people can so easily take control. I will use this knowledge in my daily life in order to make sure my actions are for good instead of evil.
Identify a character which is using memory and authority to their advantage and explain how it’s being used to their advantage.
In Animal Farm, Napoleon uses memory and authority in order to secure his power. He is able to install fear in the animals on the farm with the help of his dogs. They make sure everything is running the way he wants to and kill those who defy or rebel against him. In addition, he is able to manipulate memories to his own benefit. For example, when he told the animals that the law was that animals can not sleep in a bed with sheets, therefore he can sleep comfortably in a bed without sheets. Another example is when he sets the animals against Snowball by saying he was working with Mr. Jones all along, and makes them believe Snowball was trying to make the battle fail. This way Napoleon was able to take control of the animals on the farm and ensure that his power would not be taken away from him.
Links from the Lesson:
The Milgram Shock Experiment—Khan Academy
Why Do We Obey Authority? - The Milgram Experiments
How reliable is your memory? | Elizabeth Loftus
Can You Trust Your Memory?
Life in a Pandemic
Living in the middle of an epidemic is very new and difficult. Being a teen, makes you feel like you are missing out on so many experiences that other people got to have when they were my age. In addition, we are isolated from our friends and loved ones, other than those that live in our house, many of whom we rely on to keep us motivated and use as our support system. I have been trying to destress and keep myself on track.
Working and learning from home has been very strange. On one hand, I get to learn at my own speed and use what works best for me other than class lectures, but on the other hand there is a lot of work to get done because that is the way our teachers check to see if we are doing it. Keeping up with work loads is hard, but after a while it gets easier and more automatic
Sonia’s Quarantine Tips:
Look for a new hobby (ex. Art, Cooking, Reading, Crafting, etc.)
Relax, take some time for yourself, it’s a stressful time
Reach out to loved ones, it can help you feel less isolated
Breathe, it gets better
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