<p>ESSAY PROMPT<br>
Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment: </p>
<p>A society composed of men and women who are not bound by convention–in other words, who do not act according to what others say or do–is far more lively than one in which all people behave alike. When each person’s character is developed individually and differences of opinion are acceptable, it is beneficial to interact with new people because they are not mere replicas of those whom one has already met. Adapted from Bertrand Russell, The Conquest of Happiness</p>
<p>While there are definite strengths to allowing individuals to think and behave according to their own will, the advantages of conformism are often ignored. The fears of socialism and fascism stymie research into this crucial philosophy of social behavior, and blind people to the possibilities of a crime free, efficient, and provident utopian society.</p>
<p>With everybody conforming to standard decorum and rules of conduct, crime could be virtually eliminated. Based on Stanley Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange”, we see that even the most hardened criminals can be conditioned to repudiate their old ways and live lives as fine upstanding citizens. While there are drawbacks, the advantages of a world without theft, rape, and murder cannot be ignored. Detractors would point out that a prospective murderer would lose their individuality, but nobody can argue that a slight character flaw, or lack thereof, is worth more than a human life.</p>
<p>It also goes without saying that personal freedom to wear any kind of clothing, eat any kind of food, or go where one pleases is a prodigal waste of the composite society’s resources. Creativity, inspiration, and freedom is what we gain, but much efficiency is lost, and social and technological progress is slow. For the provident and the ecologically mindful, wearing the same kind of clothing and eating the same kind of food will alleviate pollution and increase the effectiveness of the world’s factories. Today’s progressive demographic would be the first to agree to such extreme measures may be needed to save a suffering planet, and a surfeit of mass produced rations could go a long way toward solving the problem of world hunger.</p>
<p>To recapitulate, such a conformist society would reap huge benefits due to crime free cities and savings from mass production. Resources previously diverted toward police departments or hedonistic pleasures could be directed toward a cure for AIDs, cancer, or heart disease, paving a road to a stronger, healthier, and more robust humanity.</p>