On November 18, 1978, in a cleared-out patch of the Guyanese jungle, Reverend Jim Jones ordered the 911 members of his flock to kill themselves by drinking a cyanide potion, and they did. It seems cultists were brainwashed by this megalomaniac Jones, who had named their jungle village after himself and held them as virtual slaves, if not living zombies. Jones himself was found dead. He'd shot himself in the head, or someone else had shot him. Is it plausible that more than nine hundred people took their own lives willingly, simply because he told them to?
This paper will examine aspects of certain religious groups around the world that have shocked us with similar types of behavior. Most of these groups have been categorized into what we refer to as cults.
Most of those who join these groups, do not join them with the intention of becoming a cultist, they are usually seeking a new religious group, or a self-help group, looking for some improvement in their lives. It is the group that they join that play on the individual’s insecurities and giving them some sense of order and a reason for their existence in the world.
A cult is any group of people who surround themselves around a strong authority figure. Cults, like many other groups, attempt to expand their influence for the purposes of power or money. However, to achieve these ends, destructive cults employ a potent mixture of influence and deception over members and new recruits. Using methods such as brainwashing, thought reform, and mind control. A successful conversion i
Example Essays Home
