Role vs. Personality

: Perceived roles and social boundary norms seem to have a higher gravitational pull in the galaxy of sociological behavior than innate personalities do, oftentimes. Before one makes assumptions, I repudiate the idea that was attempted to be promoted by the conducting of the Milgram Experiment, in which participants were asked to administer increasing voltages of electrical shocks to other participants for giving wrong answers to fake memory test questions and encouraged to continue to administer the painful shocks despite their desire not to do so. The experiment was contrived to show that Nazi officers were not responsible for their actions but were merely obeying their superiors’ forceful orders. However, roles are often assumed, even when arbitrarily assigned. If someone comes into a meeting where one person seems to be clearly commandeering the trajectory of the discussion in a group setting, the former will presume a more passive role as opposed to there being no clear leader of the conversation initially. Freshmen university students enter their first day of classes trying to hide their trembling knees, but little do they know that oftentimes their professors are relatively new themselves and are trying to hide their trembling knees and voices from the tenured professors as well as from their class. But the professor presumes the role of, well, a professor and the students, students, and the semester ensues. In a game of paintball, give one team of boys (forgive me for thinking males should fight the wars, if wars are to be fought) plastic police badges and the other team ski masks and see which team has no trouble shooting the other at point blank range and taking no prisoners. Let a man in plain street clothes cross a crosswalk while the red hand is flashing and see how many other pedestrians follow him. Now let a man in a business suit or lab coat do the same and watch the ducklings fall in line. Roles are not a bad thing, however. In fact, they are a good thing. I am not supposed submit to a police officer based on his personality and tone of voice. I am supposed to submit to him because he is in a God-ordained position of authority. “For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.” (Rom 13:4)