Enslaved by Order
Everyone wants to belong and be valued. People will go to extreme conditions in order for their lives to be seen as meaningful. Being isolated is one of people’s most powerful fears. Almost everyone is scared of being alone and because of this they are willing to give up everything they stand for, just so they can fit in. A person’s individuality is all they have. Yet if it means to be accepted, they will have no problem with giving it up. The novel, The Wave, written by Todd Stasser is a true story about a teacher that performs an experiment to group together his students through discipline and order. However this experiment gets out of hand as the students begin to use fear as a way to grow their organization. The novel demonstrates how if taken to far order has the potential to lead to isolation, fear, and irrational thinking. Organization is key in how the world functions. It is used everyday and is usually beneficial to society. However there are instances where it can be detrimental to the people involved with certain groups. The main problem with order is that there are always going to be people who do not want to be a part of the group, and there are also going to be people who want everyone to be involved. This is when difficulties tend to rise. Since it is the human instinct to want to belong, when there's a majority group, a person will want to be apart of it. Even if it goes against their ideals. People want to be successful and being apart of a group achieves that desire such as when they said, “I’d give up my position and be a waterboy if it meant winning a game”(53). While this seems like a nobel reason, it is stating that he will give up his individualism, as long as it means he can succeed. This fear of isolation is what leads to these organizations becoming immoral. Fear is a powerful emotion. It can be used to manipulate anyone into doing anything if used correctly. Fear is usually associated with feeling threatened and can be caused by a multitude of different circumstances. The most common being things like the dark or heights. However, fear can be used by others to inspire people into doing things they do not agree with. Organizations such as the Wave, or the Nazi party became experts in using fear to achieve their goals. This is when order can be used in the wrong way. Using the power of the majority into getting others to join a cause is wrong. Having people so scared of an organization they think “You had to hide if you weren't part of it” (94). This is not the intended purpose of being in a structured group. They are designed to allow people to feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves, not to use fear as a tool to further their cause. When someone is scared because they fear they will not belong, they are willing to go against their morals so they can stay apart of it. Humans are capable of extraordinary things. These include finding vaccines, producing jobs, and performing acts of kindness no one would think possible. At the time, humans are capable of performing disastrous acts against each other. A prime example of this, was the mass genocide of the Jewish people known as the Holocaust. This is seen as one of humanity's darkest moments and it was brought on do to order and fear. As it has been determined, people fear being isolated and alone and will do whatever is needed in order to belong. This can lead to people hurting each other. Even those that they care deeply for. Whether or not the person knows the act is wrong, they will still be inclined to do so until it is too late. As said in the novel, “David instantly recoiled in shock at what he had done”(119). This is an example of how a person was willing to injure a loved one since they believed this was the only way to further their groups cause. At this point the person has ceased to think for themselves and are only thinking of what will help their organization. This is what can happen if order and discipline are taken too seriously. The world needs organization. People need to have some order and structure in their lives or nothing would ever be accomplished. That being said, having too much structure in a person’s life can lead to unfavorable outcomes. If someone is too focused on being perfect and doing everything the way someone else tells them to do, then they begin to lose their independence. At times, not having to think on your own can be seen as a relaxing break, but if done for too long, a person may lose their ability to altogether. The world needs individual thinkers in order to inspire change throughout it. Being able to think for ourselves is a human characteristic that is not worth giving up.
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