Scapegoat A History Of Blaming Other People Essay

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Scapegoating is an aspect of human nature that has been around since the beginning of time and is prevalent in today’s society. From children blaming each other for eating the last cookie, to people blaming Muslims for terrorist attacks, it is evident that people want to protect themselves or make themselves feel superior despite the consequences the other party may face. In Charlie Campbell’s article: “ Scapegoat: A History of Blaming Other People”, the author explains that scapegoating is a person’s way of feeling superior to others. Humans tend to dehumanize and accuse the less privileged people out there, the people whom we believe are inferior to us (Campbell 184). It is easy for humans to blame their faults on someone weaker than them. …show more content…

People will always prey on the weak and use them as scapegoats to break free of their guilty charges. In addition, scapegoating has been seen many times in the past, especially in the early 1690’s as the Salem Witch Trials occurred. An example of this is in the play “The Crucible” when a manipulative teenager named Abigail accuses others of being witches to not be accused herself. Abigail cries out: “I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!” (Miller 48). If Abigail had not said what she said, she would have been viewed as a witch and sent to be hanged. Abigail’s accusations portray the need for the higher class to blame the weak to save themselves. Abigail endangered another woman’s life to save her own, just as many people would do today. Not only has scapegoating existed in the past, but it still shows in today’s modern society. Donald Trump is exemplary for this topic. He claims that Muslims are the reason for terrorist attacks because they do not report potential terrorists amongst them (Lerner 1). Trump blames Muslims for the attacks because he wants to promote

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