The well-being of a society is enhanced when many of its people question authority.Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and s

When it comes to authority, many people disagree with what’s justified or not. That’s the way society functions. Not everyone will agree on certain aspects of authority, but I also think that questioning authority, in theory, is needed. I don’t think that most people in a society questioning it is a good thing, since there must be a reason that the people are questioning it in the first place (e.g., flawed government). However, if such was the case, then I think it brings about many positive outcomes. Generally, the well-being of a society is enhanced when many of its people question authority for that very reason, although there are instances in which it can also be a mistake to do so.

If authority is coming from government or those in higher power, then it’s important to note that it is humans who are in charge. Humans are subjective and prone to error and bias, regardless of how laws or rules come about. If those putting that authority into place come from such personal motivations, or from a rigged system, then questioning that authority can lead to positive events for society as a whole. This is the way that new laws come about, and how social movements are formed. Where would we be without Martin Luther King Jr. and several African Americans questioning authority and the law? Where would we be without people questioning the other various social issues that have pervaded our history in the United States, and even in other countries. The reason Hitler was able to come into power in the way he did is exactly because of the opposite, because many of its people (or not enough) did not question his authority and just took it by blind faith. Questioning authority is crucial to adjusting society through time, and to fix many of its laws that dismiss many people’s rights.

On the other hand, is the idea that many people question authority a good thing? As mentioned previously, the reason such are questioning it may stem from the problem that those giving the authority have their own agendas and may actually not be thinking of the well-being of society. However, what if those giving the authority are? What if they are thinking long term and have more accurate depictions of what society will come to without said authority? Let’s take the case where an actual law that may benefit many is put into effect (e.g., no drunk driving). In the long term, this law may save millions of lives, enhancing the well-being of society not just in this way but also because it could convince many people not to drink. However, if up until this point, a large portion of society has driven while drunk, they may be angry and may want the law dismissed. In this way, many of the people in society will be questioning the law, even if in the long term the law is needed to enhance well-being. Sometimes, those giving the authority may be in the right, and so the question of whether many people should question authority becomes difficult to answer because there can be very strong examples for both positions.

Despite there being strong counterpoints in the contrary, I do believe that, for the most part, the well being of a society is enhanced when many people question authority. By looking at what’s causing the questioning, one can certainly argue that it’s not a good thing that [people have felt the need to question it. However, in order to truly have a chance to change social issues, people have to be able to assess in their own right if they agree with the authority. An important point to bring up as well is that only because people question authority does not mean that they will be able to change the authority in question. That is why such counterpoints can also be dismissed. People do have the right to question any authority, that is how many societies are formed (in certain places). Would banishing the law about drunk driving be good? Perhaps not, but people do have the right to question it in their own right.