Arguments Against Conformity

By all means, conformity has the potential of being extremely dangerous because of the risk factors, and because of what conformity can force someone do. Of course, conformity can be triggered by any psychological and mental disorder, but conformity can also be an element to any psychological or mental disorder, which in my opinion is more realistic. This essay revolves around conformity, and non-conformity. Most of society is filled with conformists, meanwhile people like Leopard Man that are non-conformist, are endlessly judged and treated as abnormal beings. Nevertheless, I’d have to disagree with Feys on the idea of conformity being the world’s most dangerous psychological disorder because truthfully there are a lot worse out there. On the other hand, Feys also states in paragraph six “To be human is to be an individual human, with individual tastes, talents, values and dreams that are destruct from those of others. Living in society, we are under constant pressure to surrender our individuality to the will of the majority school, the workplace, the family, etc.” This is the most honest quote in this essay because as a

The article “The Case for Fitting In” compares to my idea of conformity because I think that it means how you change your opinion due to social pressure. My idea of conformity relates to the article because it was talking about how when people were in a group and someone said the wrong answer they usually went with it. “Each subject saw 18 sets of lines, and the group answer was wrong for 12 of them” this proves that most of the time people went with the group rather than going with their personal opinion. I think that the article really compares with my definition of conformity because I think that it causes you to change your opinion and sometimes causes you to choose wrong answers. I also strongly think that the article agrees with me because

most anti-social freaks, in their obsession with displaying their freakishness, are just as dependent on others’ opinions as approval seeking socialites” (par.2). Feys is calling them non - conformist because to society these individuals are breaking the rules society wants them to

In “The Leopard Man,” Feys’ explains conformity as “the world’s most prevalent and most pernicious psychological disorder. The consequences of it are no less than the suppression and destruction of one’s self” (1). The text evidence show Feys’ point of view on how conformity can be a good or bad thing. The direct quote also illuminates how conformity can lead to one being less of him or herself. Jackson, the author of “The Lottery”, discusses how the com society to death; the author then says that this repetitive behavior of following the majority can make one become less of an individual also known as a follower.

In 1932, Jenness became the first psychologist to study conformity, which involved an experiment with basic materials and little ethical treatment (Jenness). The participants were asked to examine a jar of beans. They were then told to make an estimate of how many beans were inside of the jar. The participants were not informed of intentions of the study, thus full consent was invalid. When they were exposed to the estimates of other participants before making an individual guess, most participants’ estimations differed from the norm, and a shift occurred from the first estimates to the cluster of numbers within the pool of peer responses. This result led Jenness to form the idea of informational conformity,

In pyschology conformity can be descibed as an indiviual’s tendency to follow the unspoken rules or behaviours of the social group to which he/she belongs to or wants to be apart of. Many psychologists including , Jenness (1932), Sherif (1935) both experimented in psychology, investigating conformity and group pressure. However, perhaps the most famous conformity experiment was done by Solomon Asch (1951) and his line judgment experiment. (McLeod 2007)

The Cultures and language of immigrant groups in North America shaped their experiences. These experiences are seen through the lens of theories like melting pot, Anglo-conformity, and natural rights theory. We will dissect the complex definitions of these terms and adventure through the occurrence of the German, Native Americans and the African Americans.

Don’t Be Me Itzie and Ozzie’s friendship is a metaphor for the relationship between blind conformity and knowledgeable rebellion, respectively, in “The Conversion of the Jews” by Philip Roth. Itzie represents conformity not only to the Jewish faith, but also among society. Itzie’s blind conformity is seen through his ignorance of Jewish beliefs as well as his inability to question or understand them. Ozzie had to continually explain what Rabbi Marvin Binder explained in class to Itzie, “who had been absent from Hebrew School the previous afternoon” (1672). The boy who represents conformity attends Hebrew school less than Ozzie, the rebellious entity.

Individuality vs. Conformity: Trying To Be Yourself The general argument made by Logan Feys on the article “The Sociology of Leopard Man”, is that the author states in the article, “Conformity can be as the world’s most common but dangerous physiological disorder”. My own claim in this article, is that being a conformist might put yourself in a awfully dangerous situation. When it comes to the topic of conformity and individuality, the majority of us will readily agree that we all want to be different- it is incredibly difficult to be an individual!

There is a machine that take people, and makes them into things. It takes passion, creativity and individuality, and strips it away leaving not even a person but thing embraces monotony and conformity. Every person who embraces it, simply becomes a replaceable clogs to eventually be thrown away. They becomes destin for a meaningless life devoid of purpose.This disastrous machine is society. These views are the only way one can live life to the fullest through the views of nonconformity and self reliance while being willing to accept the consequences it entails

According to Webster Dictionary, conformity is defined as, “in compliance of rules, laws, or standards.” Mark Twain’s, “Cone-pone Opinions,” demonstrates how society reacts to new conformities; individuals eventually conform to popular ideas and inevitably abandon these ideas for something greater. Twain states, “It is our nature to conform; it is force which not many can successfully resist.” (Twain 2). The reason people conform is not for self-approval, but rather, for the approval of others.

To start with it is important to determine what each of these social processes mean, in order to understand which psychological factors are involved. Conformity is a behavioural change in response to social pressure, either real or imagined. Compliance is a behaviour change in response to an explicit request to perform an action. Obedience is a behaviour change in response to a demand or order to carry out an action. Each of these processes are undertaken due to different psychological pressures being put on the individual, from believing that they have no choice but to carry out the action – obedience, to carrying out the action because they want to feel accepted.

Rebellion and conformity are two facets of life that will never end. Just recently the elections in Egypt were taking place, and one of the examples of how the push to conform drove the people to rebel in open defiance of their government. A rigged election drove the people to start rebel against the government that sought to conform the people to their ideals and values. When three million peoples showed up on Revolution Palace in the capital Cairo to pretest the results of the November 30 presidential elections, most of them wore sneakers, in case they had to run for their lives. This crowd included people from different classes and different ages. Many would say that we have no control over our world or what happens to us. I say perhaps

Throughout history, many have tried to break away from society's norms in an attempt to live life more fully, one example would be Rosa Parks when she stood up for her rights and didn't move to the back of the bus like society has shaped the laws back then. As a result of this incident, Parks ended up getting arrested and sent to court for not following the law. In contrast, some may choose to follow the rules of others thinking that’s their best decision. An example of this figure would be Boxer from the book Animal Farm, when he adopted his first motto “ I will work harder” (Orwell 18) after the first harvest following the Rebellion. Boxer never knew about the advantage Napoleon was taking on towards him,

Although conformity is the easier choice, you sacrifice your ability to grow as an individual. When you choose to live your life conforming to the social norm you will be forever “...harnessed to a pot of dirt.”. You can only grow so much when all the characteristics that define you are confined to the limitations you are putting on yourself. It is not easy to fight against conformity as once you choose that path, it leeches onto you and forces you to stay. When you submit to conformity you get stuck behind an unbreakable stone that will forever hold you back. The speaker of the poem tells us not to be daunted when you are faced with the obstacle of conformity and you must break, “through the surface of stone.”. Once you do this you will be