Why do people behave as they do?

Social Psychology & The Holocaust

Chemistry & Modern Mythology Essay, Spring 2012

Background questions to consider:

What is human nature?

What do the experiments you have studied say about human nature?

Are people inherently good or bad? 

Do other people, their environment, et cetera influence people and cause them to behave in a certain way, or is their behavior controlled by only their will and inner morality?

Are the behaviors and choices of the people in Night merely a result of their human nature? 

How did free will play a part in people’s decisions in Night?

Thesis-Producing Questions: 

Does the behavior of a person show what kind of a person he or she is, given that they are able to use their free will and value system to make decisions?  Or, do outside forces influence the behavior of human beings?

General Requirements:

ü  Inclusion of 3+ quotations from Night

ü  Inclusion of 3+ examples from experiments

ü  MLA Citation for all sources & Works Cited Page

ü  3 pages minimum

ü  Clear, supported thesis

ü  Organized (Introduction, Body Paragraphs, Conclusion)

ü  (see rubric for more information)

Sources:

Night by Elie Wiesel

Schindler’s List

Asch’s Conformity experiment

Bystander Effect

Milgram’s Obedience of Authority experiment

Stanford prison experiment—ascribed labels

Blue eye/brown eye video (labels & discrimination)