Pushing Buttons

Dear Mom,

Recently, I watched a new reality show on Netflix called The Push. A mentalist named Darren Brown performs a social experiment to test how much people will conform to others. The subject is a man named Chris, who thinks he is attending a charity gala event. He starts by performing small tasks for people and eventually ends up helping move a dead body. Intense social pressure then pushes him to impersonate the dead man, manipulate the dead body, and edges him towards committing a murder. I won’t tell you if Chris decides to commit murder or not because I think you should watch it. I know you like shows with illusionists, so you will probably enjoy this one.

I think this social experiment is interesting and it is like nothing I have ever seen before. Darren Brown’s elaborate planning of this psychological scenario is what astounded me because of all that went into creating it. Nearly 70 actors were involved who helped orchestrate this, and even some celebrities got involved to make the charity event more believable. When the man who dies has what seems to be a heart attack, they replace his body with an extremely similar replica dummy that makes Chris believe he has really died. When it came to pushing the same man off the building, they had set up a contraption so that the man would not actually die, but the person who pushed him off the building would not be able to tell.

The Push is important for people to watch because it explores whether or not human beings are willing to commit terrible acts when they are told they have no other choice. The people involved in this experiment are much like the rest of society because they are easily swayed by others and will do anything to follow the norm. A lesson can be learned from this show because if we are aware of and understand how much we can be influenced and manipulated, we will be able to push back against those social pressures. It emphasizes how humans want to be liked by others and the extremes they will go to for social gratification or validation.

When I was growing up, you always taught me to stand out and to be my own person and I think this show is a great example of what happens when you let others manipulate you and conform to social influences. After watching this, I will be able to better recognize when I am letting myself conform to others and just following the crowd. This show brings to light a problem in our society that is very seldom talked about, but it is an extremely dangerous and prevalent one. In this case, the social pressures led the people involved to commit terrible acts, but this type of conforming happens every day. It is necessary to stand up for what you believe in, even if it goes against what everyone else believes.