Foth
English 1A
Topics for Essay #1: Obedience to Authority
Please choose one of the following topics:
1) Write an essay either defending Milgram’s experiment (arguing how and why it is a worthy
experiment) OR critiquing it (arguing that it is flawed in one or more ways). You might want to
use Baumrind’s article as well in this essay.
If you prefer, you could defend or critique Zimbardo’s experiment instead.
2) Compare and contrast the Milgram and Zimbardo experiments, considering their separate
1) objectives 2) experimental designs and procedures 3) results 4) conclusions. Your thesis
should focus on the following questions: To what extent do the findings of these experiments
reinforce one another? To what extent do they highlight different, if related, social phenomena?
(* you may substitute one of the experiments with Asch’s experiment).
The essay must be typed, double-spaced, and must follow MLA guidelines.
The essay should be 5 pages long.
You must have an explicitly stated thesis.
You must use at least four direct quotations from the readings.
Thesis statement due: Sept. 21
Rough draft is due (bring 2 copies): Sept. 26
Final draft is due: Oct.5