Obedience, Social Structure, & Milgram

In "The Perils of Obedience," Milgram details the research he gathered from extensive experimentation in the areas of obedience and authority throughout the early 1960s. In the introduction, based on the information that was gleaned from these experiments, he states that obedience is, "as basic an element in the structure of social life as one can point to" (169). This statement is undeniably true. For the many that participate daily in what Milgram refers to as "communal living" (169), it is all but impossible to ignore the influence of authority. Law governs society and, transitively, so does obedience. It is not the law that keeps people from engaging in civil disobedience, or simply taking what they want from the grocery store, or from driving on the sidewalk to get out of a traffic jam—it is the adherence to the law.

Obedience is not only the expected response to societal laws, but also to the unwritten laws distinguished by any given community. A woman who gets caught driving drunk is formally removed from society by the police, and thrown in jail. A woman who gets caught with an unkempt house is exiled from society in different ways, as she will potentially lose credibility among her peers and no longer be considered a part of their community. It is not just those who make and enforce the laws, such as police officers, that expect citizens to be obedient—people also expect it from each other. In that way, all people serve as some form of law enforcement.

Obedience is a basic element of social structure because it is something in which people are all constantly participating in one way or another. Furthermore, those who dare to cease participating—in even the most insignificant ways—run the risk of getting caught and being extradited to the fringes of society. This renders the draw of disobedience pretty weak among ordinary people. Milgram found that it is more satisfying, for many, to do right by authority (177)—as that yields greater social rewards.

Work Cited

Milgram, Stanley. "The Perils of Obedience." Obedience to authority: an experimental view. New York: Harper & Row, 1974. 168-180. Print.