The Dangers of Collectivism

        In a society where others encourage actions based on "the greater good" or the collective, it grows increasingly more difficult to break away from the herd. This essay will cover collectivism both in historical and ideological terms, and aims to defend an individualistic perspective, while exposing the dangers of collectivism.

        During communist Russia, "the greater good" was often used to suppress dissent, forcing people to shut up about any violations of human rights. People were brainwashed into thinking a violation of human rights served a greater goal to help the collective. In Solzhenitsyn's "The Gulag Archipelago", he explains the sort of "fake democracy" that Russia had during the time. In these kinds of democracies, the state would set up a scenario where one had two options, but one very bluntly benefitted them and one hindered them. Moreover, the "benefit" did not actually help them, but only boosted their status in the eyes of the public. One example Solzhenitsyn gives shows the extreme atheist and anti-religious motif during the time. Russia severely suffered during communism, and Russia loved to blame the scapegoat. In this scenario, the state technically could not demand money from the church, but they easily went around it. They told the church that if they were not to "donate" money, they would blame the church for the famine. The church still has a choice in this scenario, but one would cause a severe detriment to their reputation, and would label them as the cause for the famine, because they were selfish and would not give the money. 

        Communist Russia is full of examples of these scenarios. Solzhenitsyn, in his Gulag Archipelago, once again, writes, "Only by basing itself on the collectives can the multitudinous camp administration rework the consciousness of the prisoners." In short, "the greater good" is used for political control. By saying, "Hey, think about the greater good!" one can easily become tricked into thinking what they are doing is wrong, without even a clear attempt to explain why it is wrong. Instead of logos, it uses pathos to control your behavior and attitude. It skips the debate, and accuses you of being selfish and individualistic. In a way, this sort of behavior resembles early Puritanism in New England. Only, in an atheist state, one cannot ask one to do it for God, so it substitutes the utility of the people. In a desperate attempt for political control, one must invent a sort of transcendent being. "Do it for God" is merely the same thing as "Do it for the collective".

In short, collectivism serves as a tool for political control. "The greater good" is merely an invention used for controlling the population. It reinforces conformity by telling you that your idea is not right if it does not align with the ideologies of a certain political party or if it does not benefit "the greater good". Collectivism is dangerous, and should be avoided at all costs, along with encouraging an individualistic society, where people are encouraged to act autonomously and not alongside the desires of a collective.