Non Conformity and Society Essay

Even though an overwhelming number of people believe that law and its implementation is the decisive factor that determines the success of a society. But is this generalization justified? Tim Li explores whether this idea is reality or just another myth. A society is based on a system of rules and regulations which all individuals are expected to abide by. Conformity, in general, means to go in accordance with those rules that govern our society. For instance, a group is going for camping; now that group cannot function if each of their individual members do not display a reasonable extent of conformity. This e.g. implies that even though the literal meaning of conformity remains the same, the way the people embrace it changes. To a large extent on conformity is needed for the success and improvement of a society. In the following article, I will explain conformity by discussing about Copernicus, Euthanasia and the growth of science. About 600 years ago, the church was considered law. No one could defy its teachings and whosoever did so was publicly beheaded. One of the theories of the church was that the earth was the center of the universe and that other planets revolved around it. Copernicus was a genius who had a great interest in astronomy. It was he who stated that the sin was the hub around which all other planets revolved. In this case Copernicus was a non conformist i.e. he believed in something that was against the religious teachings/implications of the church, but his being non conformist was the sole cause of the development of a theory that bought about a great change in the scientific perspective of astronomy. At present a very serious issue has jumped into the consideration and thinking of the society. The government is pondering on whether to accept the growing numbers of Euthanasia or to deny them. Euthanasia is when people suffering from long term chronic .are non conformist i.e. who don’t want to live are benefited more than other people suffering from the same types of diseases. Here conformity does not help, or in other words, it is better to be a non conformist. Science too, plays a decisive role on our changing society. It surrounds us completely, from a common light bulb to aero planes and space travel. In short, a society cannot function without science. A critical analysis of science suggests that new discoveries in science break laws on which our older societies and generations are built on. E.g. Until the 1900’s everyone believed that man cannot fly, but now science has broken that barrier, it is therefore a non conformist in relation to that law which was dominant at that time. Revolutionary research into stem cells has prompted a heated ethical debate between the church and the scientific faction. So, if this situation is examined, the church has always seen science as a ‘hard core’ criminal but that form of science is needed for the mere existence of a society. All these arguments reinforce the original statement that some degree of non conformity is needed for a successful society. Although too much conformity means the elimination of all crimes, it also implies the abrupt stop in scientific technology and I can’t live in Stone age, can you?