Friday, March 3, 2017

Pathos in "The Sacrament"

For cult leaders, preying upon pathos is a unique and powerful method of controlling and attracting followers. Appealing to the sense of emotion is an especially important tool, as the way we feel truly does have the power to influence the way we act, behave and view the world. In The Sacrament (watch the trailer here), this is seen through the control of the commune’s leader, who goes by the hauntingly simple name, “Father”. Father has brainwashed his followers into committing heinous and exploitive acts because he has full power over their emotions. These followers feel that Father has given them a sense of hope and happiness, choosing to ignore the wrongful pain that he is inflicting on them and their loved ones. Another modern day cult in which an appeal to pathos is particularly present in is The Brethren (to learn more about this group, click here). This group has such a grip on the emotions of their followers that they are willing to give up all worldly comforts in exchange for membership. They have become so emotionally attached to the goals and teachings of the Brethren that they cut all outside ties, completely giving themselves to the group. Emotional appeal is one of the most powerful tactics because it allows for the formation of bonds, making followers incredibly vulnerable to the grip of their leaders.

5 comments:

  1. I liked your explanation f how cult leaders tend to use pathos or emotional appeal to attract or maintain their followers. Adding to that, I think the film producers also used pathos in the sense that they wanted the audience to feel compassion with the people who were trapped in that cult (whether a film is fictional or not, viewers tend to feel some kind of emotions towards the characters). When they describe the place, they use words like "chaotic" and "bizarre" and play some background music to create some tension before they meet the leader of the cult. At the end, viewers see how people are trying to flee, but they get killed trying to do so. I believe that would cause some emotional reaction from the audience

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  2. I liked how you connected the People's Temple with a modern cult like The Brethren. One common theme between these two cults seems to be that they try to separate the cult members from everyone else. This separation adds to the emotional connection to the cult, which can then be misused by the cult's leader.

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  3. I think the fact that people join these cults and give in to everything the leaders tell them to do just goes to show how it is a human need to feel secure. While these individuals are in the cult they have a sense of belonging and identity.They also tend to believe that the leader will protect them. This sense of strong emotional investment makes these individuals feel like their leader can never do any wrong. An appeal to pathos can be dangerous because it has the power to manipulate people.

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  4. Your analysis of how cult leaders employ pathos to attract followers is very good, but how does it relate to the pathos of the trailer and its intended audience?

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  5. It is absolutely true that these cult leaders have brainwashed their followers into blind worshiping, and I like how you connected this with to their pathos. They appeal to the emotions such as hope and happiness to attract their followers.

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