Kalle Lasn's Essay 'The Cult You' Re In

The “American Dream” has changed form dramatically since the term was first coined in 1931 by James Truslow Adams. By definition, it refers to the goal of the American people to pursue their own individual dreams with independence. However, considering the increased amounts of advertising in recent years due to the advancement of technology, are Americans actually making their own, uninfluenced decisions about the products they are purchasing? Kalle Lasn, the founder of the anticorporate AdBusters Media Foundation, would likely disagree. As the founder of this organization, the Estonian author’s goal is to inform average consumers about the hidden grime in advertising that they may not be aware of, such as discrimination and logical fallacies.

Everyone is in a consumer’s hypnosis, even if you think you are not. When you go to a store and pick one brand over the other, you are now under their spell. The spell/ hypnosis is how companies get you to buy there things over other companies and keep you hooked. Either through commercials or offering something that you think will make your life better by what they tell you. For example, you go to the store and you need to buy water, once you get to the lane and look, there is 10 different types of water you can buy. You go pick one either because the picture is better or you seen the commercial the other day and you want it. During the length of this paper we will talk about two important writers, Kalle Lasn the writer of “The Cult

Cults influence society in many ways. They shape people’s behaviors and emotions to get them to align with the cult’s beliefs and thoughts. The people that join cults are usually very insecure about themselves and want to be accepted by then group. Cults offer people acceptance, friendship, community, and family. These qualities often appeal to someone who feels the need to be accepted by others. Cults are groups that use tactics such as the foot in the door phenomenon, entrapment, and obedience to achieve the leader's ultimate desires as seen through the cults of Jonestown and Family International.

This research will address the self-proclaimed prophet of the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints, a sect of Mormonism based in Utah, Warren Jeffs and his cult of fear. Warren Jeffs had control over ten thousands of followers for nearly a decade. Warren Jeffs coerced young girls into polygamous marriages with older men. Jeffs is estimated to have over 70 wives. The media was shunned, and he created a hidden community where polygamy was prized above anything else. In 2007, after there was a two year FBI manhunt, Jeffs was convicted as an accomplice to rape. Warren Jeff's rise to power effort led to his fallout. Even after his conviction his followers believed that he was innocent and held onto his beliefs and practices.

Much like Maeve’s trial and error phase, Erikson’s theory of identity versus role confusion explains psychological conflict of adolescence. This theory states that this conflict is resolved positively when adolescents achieve an identity after a period of exploration and inner soul searching. If a young person’s earlier conflicts were resolved negatively or if society limits their choices to ones that do not match their abilities and desires, they may appear shallow, directionless, and unprepared for the challenges of late adulthood. (p. 314). Maeve luckily didn’t make many choices that were resolved negatively. These social and emotional changes weren’t always easy for the rest of the family to deal with, but they were a part of her growth. With us there to provide nurturing support, she was able to develop her own healthy identity after her period of “soul searching.”

No one has ever been able to articulate just what makes a cult, and what makes a religion different. Yet most people, when listing mainstream religions, name Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, among others. These religions have existed for thousands of years and have millions of followers; they have thus earned a degree of respect even from outsiders. However, Mormonism—the tradition of the Latter Day Saints movement—is considered strange, and by some, a cult. In the modern age, many consider its very premise a hoax. Mark Twain criticized the Mormon holy scripture, calling it “chloroform in print” (Turner 229), and Jacob Weisberg (editor of the Washington Post) called Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, “an obvious con man” (Ostling xv). Yet

There are three distinctive characteristics that Ruby Turpin showed in the essay "Revelation." Ruby was an extremely dominant woman who was judgmental, controlling, and blind to the true reality of life. She was definitely in need of a revelation in order to help her with a change in attitude. I suppose she was never introduced to the saying "the first shall be last and the last shall be first."

Cults are the groups that exhibit intense and unquestioning devotion to a single cause. All the group members have a same goal or mission, and the group thinking helps the group members to stick on the same goal. For the Heaven Gate, their goal is to enter the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom level above human. The documentary of “Heaven Gate Cult” perfectly shows the four ways for the cult to promote their group thinking.

Similarly, the idea of an artificially constructed version of reality is also evident in the context of our time through social media. The YouTube video “Are you living an Insta lie?” explores how Instagram users post a different “version of reality”. Viewers on Instagram interpret the posts literally, without imagining what effort was made to edit the photo, providing only one version of reality. For example, the image of the girl laying on her bed with the quote “#woke up like this”, when taken literally, shows she woke up looking fresh and perfect. However, the video shows us that she washes her face, brushes her hair and applies make up, clearly revealing one message to the audience that is very different to her reality. The TED Talk ‘Looks aren’t everything, believe me, I’m a model’ by Cameron Russel also exposes the different versions of reality manipulated in the modelling industry. The juxtaposition of the image of the attractive young women posing in her bikini and Cameron’s explanation “this is the first time I ever wore a bikini, I was only a young girl" further highlights the constructed reality we live in, in contemporary society. Through the

When people try and sway away from the real world and all the trouble, they have a hard time leaving their experiences behind. Once you experience something, you can learn from

The church of Scientology has been the subject of controversy since its inception. Its methods and beliefs have attracted the attention of scholars from around the world. The church has been under government investigation and has endured a countless amount of lawsuits (Reitman 14). It is also a hot topic by the media with several endorsements by some of the most recognized Hollywood celebrities. However, the main topic of debate regarding the Church of Scientology is its status as a religion. Some members claim that the church has helped them overcome their struggles and that they are happier people, while others condemn it as a dangerous cult (Sweeney). The church of Scientology is a religious group whose purpose is to retain their

     For many years, cult leaders always had a psychological hold on their followers' minds. Whether it was to kill other people or to kill themselves, they did it without question. Some cult leaders used fear, violence and guilt as a means of a weapon to control the minds of their followers. Other cult leaders used persuasive and spiritual speeches that made their followers believe they were doing good and fulfilling God's plan. Because cult leaders are powerful through psychological offenses, the people that belong to their cults are brainwashed into doing things they wouldn't normally do in their right state of mind.

A cult is defined as a social group or a social movement under one charismatic leader. It maintains a belief system, which includes a transformation of a group member. Members of the group have a high level of commitment to the leader, members, and beliefs (Lalich). An additional definition to consider is from the American Journal of Psychotherapy:

destructive cult is a rigidly structured absolutist group usually under an authoritarian, charismatic leader which isolates itself from established societal

Manson was referred to both as "God" and "Satan" by his followers. As the family's guru, he claimed to be a reincarnation of Jesus Christ. The police and DA argue that Manson found sections within the Beatles' song Helter Skelter and within the last book in the Christian Bible, Revelation which he felt referred to a devastating future race war between blacks and whites. Although Manson is not believed to have killed anyone directly, he ordered his followers to commit the famous Tate, LaBianca and other murders.