Dalrymple And Erich Fromm

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Lance Corporal Harold W. Dawson and Private Louden Downey blindly follow the unethical order of the Code Red granted by Colonel Nathan R. Jessup (Few). Obedience, by human nature, is common courtesy; however, blind obedience presents a dichotomy that forces people to question the overall value of obedience itself. Two analytical authors that delve into the issue of blind obedience and the submission to authority are Theodore Dalrymple and Erich Fromm. Theodore Dalrymple, a retired prison doctor and psychiatrist, wrote in his article, "Just Do What the Pilot Tells You," the construction of Milgram's experiment and his results of obedience to authority (Dalrymple 120). He then recalls a moment when he was on a plane reading Milgram's Obedience…show more content…
With honor comes respect. With courage comes the discernment of right and wrong. However, with commitment comes the moral understanding that a marine listens to its superior's orders and does not question the commands. Knowing that what they were conducting what was considered morally wrong, Dawson and Downey listened to the commands of Colonel Jessup and attacked Private Santiago by following the Code Red order (Few). Dalrymple would agree with the edge of commitment because he effectively explains how, while blind obedience may be dangerous, blind disobedience is also extremely dangerous (Dalrymple 122). He describes how when he was a young doctor he would obey the orders his elder doctors would instruct, even when he questioned the orders, because there is a respected "hierarchy among doctors" (Dalrymple 123). He also claims how he believes that every order was permitted in the interests of the patients. However, Dalrymple clearly conveys how there are moments when a young doctor's duty is to disobey, shyly expressing that judgment is always necessary when taking orders from a superior (Dalrymple 123). Agreeing with Dalrymple, Fromm discusses how man evolves with acts of disobedience, whether it be a technological advance or spiritual advance. He effectively procures how, with the act of obedience, one must submit to an outer being, ignoring the inner conscience (Fromm 125). Stanley Milgram, in his second article on obedience,…show more content…
Colonel Jessup, head director of the Marine Corps base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, understood his roll of power and exercised it regularly. One moment in the movie, Colonel Jessup called in one Private and ordered him to call the President and order a surrender on Cuba in which the Private was willing to execute the order without inquiring for a reason for the surrender (Few). While Colonel Jessup told the Private not to comply with his order, he still displayed the effect of his title and authority. Both Fromm and Dalrymple agree that authority keeps some type of order. Fromm claims that people obey authority because it allows him or her to have a sense of protection (Fromm 127). Dalrymple effectively states how, if a young doctor disobeyed a superior doctor's orders every time, then the system of medicine practice would collapse (Dalrymple 121). Professor Ralph R. Reiland of Robert Morris University in his article, "The Hazards of Blind Obedience," states how a band of Arendtian men took orders from their superior to massacre a German village (Reiland). When the men were captured, they believed they had undertaken naught incorrectly since they were simply obeying orders (Reiland). This behavior is exactly how Dawson and Downey reacted to the situation of the Code Red since all they had consummated was obey orders (Few). Furthermore, Saul McLeod, a successful psychologist, would also agree with the idea

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