Us+vs+Them+-+Who+Goes+There

Post your group's answer here. It might be a good idea to type your answer in Word first and then cut/paste it into here. Place your responses at the bottom of the page...

BHL3:** Your first reaction to certain objects are'nt always the right judgement. In this case, the characters of "Who Goes There?" already made a bad judgement of the unearthly creature. The crew's reaction upon seeing the unearthly creature was that they thought it was evil due to its physical expression and "the thing" being somewhat of an alien. Because of the "thing's" physical expression of anger in its red eyes that it was believed to be evil and since the crew didnt know much about the existance of aliens, they became afraid of the unknown. People are afraid of the unknown because they dont understand what it is. When people who do not know about a certain thing, such as the alien, they will begin to form explanations of their own based on their crazy or most of the time incorrect ideas because of the overreaction to spoting it. This is where the "US vs Them" takes place.
 * 4th Block

Humans tend to place people into "us and them" categories due to their own judgement. This judgement is based on either the lack of information where that judgemnt can be incorrect or due to their own oppinions and personality. A good point of why this idea of "Us vs Them" is inserted into this short novel is because of the time period. Campbell wrote this in the middle of the segregation period. This idea must have been on his mind at the time. Its believeable that he was trying to send out a message to people, whom might have read the story, that this idea is wrong. McReady told Norris in chapter 2 that the thought/idea of "Us vs Them" is wrong.

Weirdhigg:** Upon seeing The Thing, most of the crew of Big Magnet lose their nerve. One of the biggest men in the camp couldn't look at it and had to leave. The first characteristics that the crew places on The Thing, among others, were, heish, evil, violent, dam*ed, ect. The crew had placed all of these labels based on nothing but it's three red eyes. They believed that these eyes were showing the essence of hatred within it, though they could have been reflecting the hatred radiating from the crew around it. This reaction shows exactly how the human race categorizes everyone just on how they appear.
 * 5th Block

When you are in the "us" category, then you will lead a fairly OK life. But if you are in the "them" category, then you better buckle up, because you are in for a bumpy ride. When placed in the them category, you, or your society, or even your race will be persecuted to near extinction. These incredibly unfair categories are determined by the individual, but they could also be determined by a society or even a race.

Society is responcible for creating a fear of the unknown. Just like the characters in //Who Goes There//, it is difficult to accept things that you do not understand. For example, the crew developed a notion that the Thing was evil because of the color of its eyes when really, any misconduct of the Thing was probably just a reflection of the fear it was experiencing.
 * Alyssa, Jordan, Aaron, Ken:**

Above all, it is not (in our opinion) human nature to prejudge others. It comes from the influence of others. The crew in //Who Goes There// created barriers between the Thing and themselves. There are however, people whod who decide between "us and them". Sometimes, people want to feel better about themselves so they compare their themselves to someone else. They often catagorize an unfamiliar person as a them so they feel better about themselves. The people who judge others call themselves "them".

remember responses should be thoughtful and constructive (min. of 3-4 sentences in length) I agree with Alyssa saying that society sepreates itself between us and them. Also when they say that it isn't human to prejudge people. What I don't agree is that society isn't responsible for fear of the unknown the human mind is for following those who say it.
 * RESPOND BELOW** format - your username in bold (like this **bhlspectrum**:) then type your response
 * //__Mepeople:__//**
 * sprinkledillusions:** I really agree with Alyssa, Jordan, Aaron, and Ken's answer when they say that it is not human nature to pre-judge something. That it is influenced by the things around you and the environment you came from. So, just because these men came from a society where the color red is associated with fierceness and power, the men are intimidated and then turn that fear into a hatred for the creature, calling it evil. That's a really good answer, it made me think more about the way humans acquire a basis for their first impressions.


 * hannah_dh**: exactly. The society(s) we live in impose these ideas into our heads at very young ages, to where it becomes almost a subconscious action, judging people and things by our own standards (judging before we even know - way to break down a word!). The intimidation is a great point as well. As humans, when we feel frightened one of the reactions is sometimes to criticize the other party/power/body. But then again, it's society that instills such reactions in us. What it gets down to, from any view point, is that it's the world around us that crates the prejudices. One great thing about this story is that there are all these underlying meanings and commentaries that expose themselves in quite interesting ways, and we can have these great, and somewhat provocative, discussions about such things.


 * giannispowers**: I agree with Jordan, Ken, Alyssa, and Aaron. It is society, not human nature, that causes people to discrimante things that are different. Sometimes, people judge other people and things just to feel better about themselves. This predjuice is created by the world around us.