Walden Two Analysis - 789 Words

B. F. Skinner’s Walden Two is a fictional account of a utopia set after World War II built on psychological techniques and behavioral engineering. Its creator, T. E. Frazier, is indicative of Skinner himself, who was a well-known behaviorist and psychologist in the mid-20th Century. â€Å"Give me the specifications, and I’ll give you the man!† he boasts in his novel. Although the words are really Frazier’s, they best summarize Skinner’s behaviorist model. Given enough knowledge about man’s behavior, one can manipulate him however he chooses through careful experimentation. The story is told from the perspective of a Professor Burris, who is surprised at his office one day by two alumni. While stationed in the Philippines for two years†¦show more content†¦Everything, it seems, is pragmatically designed to perfectly suit its task. In the following days, they are shown the nursery, concert hall, gardens, cafeterias, dairies, and schools. They see the children raised in communal nurseries and schools. They live largely independently from their parents and learn equally independently. As Frazier puts it, â€Å"Our children aren’t neglected, but they’re seldom, if ever, taught anything.† That is, in school. Outside the nursery they are trained with exercises in patience and jealousy so as to combat these feelings. The â€Å"behavioral engineering† is simple and even tame by modern standards. Some kids are forced to wait five minutes before eating, given toys that take progressively more work to use, and told not to eat lollipops hung around their neck. Furthermore, all this training is completed by age six. Even so, the exercises seem cruel and unusual to one member of the tour in particular--Castle. He was skeptical about Walden Two from the beginning, always searching for gaps and questioning Frazier’s motives. Castle also grows frustrated when Steve and Mary announce their intentions to join the community and are accepted. Eventually, however, he lays it to rest for himself, declaring it â€Å"Fascism† before leaving for the university with the Professor. Burris feels off. Until then, he had brushed off the idea of joining Steve and Mary at Walden Two, but then at the train station, he makes up his mind. He packs aShow MoreRelatedWalden Two Analysis914 Words   |  4 PagesB. F. Skinner’s novel, Walden Two, tells a story about a group of Americans discovering a way to escape from a broken world in a utopian society. The community, called Walden Two, unifies its members through strict policies and positive reinforcement. Even though outsiders find these pol icies strange, those who live in Walden are thankful for the happiness they experience. In his work, Skinner teaches his readers about behavioral engineering and how utopian communities would not be â€Å"perfect† withoutRead MoreBiography of Burrhus Frederic Skinner Essays1329 Words   |  6 PagesPsychology and moved to Minnesota to teach at the University of Minnesota. He met Yvonne Blue there and married her. Between raising a family and teaching Skinner was not able to do much work studying and experimenting with behavior. In 1944 World War Two was in full swing and Skinner was able to work on his behavior experiments. He was hired to work on a top secret government project. Skinner had a tough job to do, he had to teach pigeons to guide missiles. There were no missile guidance systems thenRead More Lessons from Walden Two Essay1271 Words   |  6 PagesLessons from Walden Two Walden Two is a novel about a fictional community in present day America. The community is a Utopia of the highest standards: the people are happy and content, there is a minimum of hurtful emotions and activities, and everyone is healthy and prosperous. It is a stark contrast with the world we are living in today. So why dont we change our society to match that of Walden Two, solving all of our nations many problems? For one thing, we do not know if a society patternedRead MoreTranscendentalism: Henry David Thoreau Essay1096 Words   |  5 Pagesand eventually led him to write Walden (Henry David Thoreau, Discovering Biography). Walden was also inspired by Transcendentalism, a literary movement that challenged the use and need for material objects and religious evidence. Transcendentalism provided Thoreau with a different view on humanity and religion. Thoreau wrote Walden to document his years spent living at Walden Pond and to express his ideas on the simplicity and individual n ature of humanity. 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Thoreau wrote Walden in 1854 and Emerson wrote American scholar in 1837 not only that they have written many articles which was anti government such as ‘American scholar, ‘Walden’ and many more. Emerson and Thoreau have more of comparison than contras t because both the characters have similar perspective but at the certain point different from eachRead MoreConquering Sainte Terre in Walking by Henry David Thoreau Essay800 Words   |  4 Pagesheads in the village behind. He doesn’t mean it in a way to walk in nature to be free, but to free your mind when walking in nature to escape the world. He brings his philosophical views and incorporates it into his walking. Robert Matouzzis analysis of Ralph Waldo Emersons The American Scholar is about the call for cultural and intellectual independence. He then explains the main influences on what he calls Man Thinking: nature, history, and life as action. â€Å"Men have become the tool of theirRead MoreWhy True Innovators Must Behave Like Entrepreneurs1029 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION Analysis of the Relationship between Entrepreneurship and Innovation According to the author, personal entrepreneurship is the ability of a person to trade in goods and services for the purposes of creating wealth for the individual, while personal innovation is the ability to generate new ideas for the purpose of creating new or improved products or services. The author further argued that organizational entrepreneurship is the knack of the registered business toRead MoreDevelopment of the Scholar-Practitioner: Article Analysis Resubmission867 Words   |  4 PagesDevelopment of the Scholar-Practitioner: Article Analysis Resubmission by Calanthia Carter Calanthia.Carter@Waldenu.edu Student ID #A00013887 School: Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership Program: Ph.D. in Education Specialization: Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Instructor: Joanne Heilman, Ph.D. Walden University Resubmission: January 29, 2012 Article Analysis Jazvac-Martek, M. (2009). Oscillating role identities: The academic experiences of educationRead MoreTranscendentalism Essay1545 Words   |  7 PagesPrimarily started in New England, Ralph Waldo Emerson was a key component in this new philosophical era of intuitive, spiritual thinking. His unique style of literature (such as Self-Reliance and The American Scholar) as well as Henry David Thoreau’s Walden brought objective ideas into the open, while critiquing the general state of intellectualism and spirituality at the time. The core of the values of transcendentalism can be stemmed from a mix of Hindu teachings and German idealism. These values include