The Crucible Socratic Seminar: Pre-Reading Resources
Essential Question: How can fear, suspicion and ignorance lead to cruelty and destruction in society?
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What allows individuals to be cruel to one another?
What are some of the effects of this cruelty on the individual? On society? Have you seen
examples in your own personal experience?
From where does prejudice and suspicion come? What are the effects on the individual who is
experiencing prejudice? The one who is prejudice? How does prejudice add to the cruelty of
society?
What role does ignorance play in cruelty, destruction and prejudice in society?
What are the causes of mass hysteria?
What is groupthink? Describe positive and negative effects of this phenomenon.
How does it impact society? The individual?
How does modern technology affect groupthink in positive and negative ways?
What are some modern day examples of a “witch hunt”? Why do they exist? How might one be
caused?
Is human cruelty implicit or is it something that can be overcome in the individual? Provide
examples to support your thinking.
What are some methods to alleviate fear and suspicion in society?
What are some methods to alleviate human cruelty in society?
Resources
ARTICLES
“This is so We” from Psychology Today
 http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200906/group-think-is-so-we
 An articles about how preferences are formed by social phenomenon (ex: music downloads)
“The Marathon Bombings: Lessons on Fear, Good and Bad” from Psychology Today
 http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/how-risky-is-it-really/201304/the-marathon-bombingslessons-fear-good-and-bad
 An article about the positive and negative effects of fear
 Discusses some ideas on how fear can be overcome in a society but will always exist
“A Brief History of Group Think” from Yale Alumni Magazine
 https://www.yalealumnimagazine.com/articles/1947
 An article describing how the term “group think” came to exist and some examples of it in history
 Describes possible ways “group think” can be avoided
 First part is good on its own, but it also has a collection of academics views of “group think” at
the end of the article that could be broken into separate pieces
“Bad to the Bone: Are Humans Naturally Aggressive” from Psychology Today
 http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/busting-myths-about-human-nature/201204/bad-the-boneare-humans-naturally-aggressive
 An article analyzing whether violence has a psychological and physiological basis
The Evils of Yes Men and Group Think from CNN News
 http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-evils-of-yes-men-and-groupthink/
 This article describes the problems caused in corporations when leadership does not seek truth
over flattery
“Prejudice Can Cause Depression” from the Association of Psychological Science
 http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/prejudice-can-cause-depression-atthe-societal-interpersonal-and-intrapersonal-levels-researchers-argue.html
 This article describes the link between depression and hate for self and others
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It is really interesting and addresses deep-seated connections between self-loathing and prejudice
of others
“What Causes Prejudice Against Immigrants and How Can it be Tamed” from Scientific American
 http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-causes-prejudice-aga/
 This article defines prejudice and its causes; it explains how “foreign” can equal threat, and it
addresses options for how to alleviate prejudice in society
“Europe’s Roma Face Witch Hunt After Reports of Child Snatching” from Time Magazine
 http://world.time.com/2013/10/23/europes-roma-face-witch-hunt-after-reports-of-child-snatching/
 This article outlines a modern day witch hunt based upon race through examining the plight of the
Roma in Europe (from 2013)
“Peter King’s Modern Day Witch Hunt” from The Washington Post
 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/10/AR2011031004680.html
VIDEO/MULTIMEDIA RESOURCES
“To this day, for the Beautful and the Bullied” a TEDTalk from Shane Koyczan (12 min.)
 http://www.ted.com/talks/shane_koyczan_to_this_day_for_the_bullied_and_beautiful.html
 A man talks about how he came to be a bully. It is a very personal take on the article on the
effects of “prejudice” on the individual, as he experienced bullying growing up because of his
weight.
“The Wisdom of Crowds” from PBS
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-FonWBEb0o
 This video explains how crowds can accurately estimate information to come up with correct
answers whereas one individual is unlikely to be able to come to the same conclusion
“The Code- The Wisdom of the Crowd” from BBC
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOucwX7Z1HU
 This video has the same information as the one above, but has a different tone.
“The Power and Danger of Online Crowds” a TEDTalk from James Surowiecki (16 min.)
 http://www.ted.com/talks/james_surowiecki_on_the_turning_point_for_social_media.html
 This video explores the blogosphere as a form of “collective intelligence” and also addresses
potential problems
 It provides some examples about how groups think more effectively than individuals.