The Milgram Experiment (I of II)
As a fictional story
New Haven, Connecticut
March 15, 1962
Dylan and I are walking through the basement of Linsly-Chittenden Hall on the Yale University campus.
“How long has Professor Milgram been doing this study?” I ask.
“Since August,” Dylan tells me. “I’m in the weekly seminar for first-year grad students and I frequently watch from behind the one-way mirror. Like I said, all the subjects are Connecticut men from age 20 to 50.”
We walk across the concrete floor and bend our heads a bit to avoid hitting the steampipes running along the ceiling. Dylan earned his bachelor’s at CU Boulder last June and started working on his master’s degree in psychology here in September. He’s been accepted to Yale’s medical school and will start working on his M.D. in September. Meanwhile, he’s been energized by a 28-year-old assistant psychology professor named Stanley Milgram.
We arrive at the room behind the mirror. “Professor, this is my psychologist cousin, Ren Prothero. Thanks for letting him watch this session.” Stanley Milgram and I smile and nod our greeting to each other and shake hands.
“John Williams there in his gray coat is actually a high school biology teacher,” Milgram tells me, “but he plays the role of the experimenter.” Williams looks to be in his early thirties, has a gaunt face, and projects an air of stern technical efficiency.
“And there’s James McDonough, who’s actually head payroll auditor at a railroad. Not quite an actor, but he plays the role of Mister Wallace, the learner.” McDonough looks to be in his late forties and has a mild, pleasant, and unassuming manner.
“Here comes the last subject of the evening,” Milgram tells us.
A man arrives and is greeted at the door of the lab. “I’m Mister Williams, and this is Mister Wallace.” “Wallace” smiles but pretends to be nervous.
“Welcome to our Memory Project. We are testing theories about how people learn new material. One way people learn things is by being punished for making a mistake.
“For example, a child may learn not to behave a certain way by getting a spanking. A spanking may teach a child to remember better and learn effectively.
“However, we don’t know how much punishment is best for learning. So we are asking you to be a teacher and to help us find out what effect punishment has on learning.”
The subject, the “teacher”, seems to understand.
“Okay,” says Williams, “now we’re setting the learner up so he can get some punishment. Learner, come with me. Teacher, come look.”
The three men move past a partition to a space with an armchair. “Wallace” sits down on it.
“Roll up your shirtsleeves,” says Williams, and after “Wallace” does so, Williams straps his arms to the armrests. “This is to prevent excessive movement during the experiment.” He also applies paste. “This is to prevent blisters or burns to Mister Wallace’s arms.”
The subject nods and Williams talks to Wallace.
“Now learner, the teacher here will read pairs of words to you. Try to remember these pairs.
“When he says the first word, he will give you four words that might be the paired word. You press one of the levers here – one, two, three, or four – whichever you believe to be the second word.”
“All right,” says “Wallace”.
“If you get it correct, fine,” Williams tells him. “But if you make a mistake, you will be punished with an electric shock.”
Williams looks at the subject. “All right, teacher, let’s head back to the shock generator.”
Williams and the subject walk back over and the subject takes his seat in front of a box-shaped instrument that’s about three feet long and a foot-and-a -half high and a foot-and-a-half deep.
The man looks at the metallic front panel with levered switches going across in a row. Above each switch is a number, each one numbered 15 units higher than the previous one: 15, 30, 45, 60. Above each grouping of switches is a term:
SLIGHT SHOCK
MODERATE SHOCK
STRONG SHOCK
VERY STRONG SHOCK
INTENSE SHOCK
EXTREME INTENSE SHOCK
DANGER: SEVERE SHOCK
“There are 30 switches here, teacher,” Williams tells the man. “This machine generates electric shocks. Ranging from 15 volts to 450 volts.”
“Um-hmm,” says the man.
“When you press one of the switches all the way down, the learner gets a shock.”
“Um-hmm.”
“When you raise it, the shock stops. Like this.”
“Um-hmm.”
“Each time the learner gets the correct answer, say ‘correct’ and move on to the next line. The correct answer is underlined.”
“Oh yeah, uh-huh.”
“Each time he gives the wrong answer, you say ‘wrong’ and tell him the number of volts you are going to administer.”
“Um-hmm.”
“Administer the punishment. Then read the correct word pair.”
“Uh-huh.”
“And each time he gives a wrong answer, move up one switch on the shock generator.”
“Um-hmm.”
“Okay, learner,” Williams says into the microphone to “Wallace”, “the teacher is about to begin.” He looks at the man. “Ready. Begin.”
The man presses the first switch. The box emits an electric buzzing sound followed by a series of clicks. Two lights flash – a bright red light above the switch and a blue light labeled “voltage energizer”. And the dial on the “voltage meter” swings to the right.
The man, who can hear “Wallace” but not see him, starts reading the word pairs to him:
BLUE girl.
NICE day.
FAT neck.
GREEN ink.
RICH boy.
FAST bird.
SOFT hair.
WET duck.
BRAVE woman.
WHITE horse.
SHARP needle.
SLOW dance.
NEW book.
QUIET evening.
SWEET taste.
TRUE story.
Then he starts reading the first word followed by four possible answers:
“BLUE: boy, girl, grass, hat.” BUZZ. “BLUE girl. That’s correct.”
Next one. “NICE: day, sky, job, chair.” BUZZ. “NICE day. That’s correct.”
Next one. “FAT: man, lady, tub, neck.” BUZZ. “That’s wrong.” ZZZT. “That’s 15 volts. The correct word pair is FAT neck.”
He moves to the switch that says 30 volts. “GREEN: grass, hat, ink, apple.” BUZZ. “Wrong. Here’s 30 volts.” ZZZT. “GREEN ink.”
He moves to 45 volts. “RICH: boy, cake, man, girl.” BUZZ. “Wrong. You get 45 volts.” ZZZT. “RICH boy.”
When he gets to 60 volts we hear “Wallace” say, “Ugh”. At 90 volts a louder, “Ugh!” At 105 volts, an even louder, “Ugh!!” At 120 volts, “Ugh!! Hey, this really hurts.”
I look at Milgram and Dylan. “It’s all right,” Milgram tells me, “the sounds from ‘Wallace’ are all recorded sounds.”
At 150 volts, the “teacher” hears the learner “Wallace” exclaim, “Ugh!!! That’s all. Get me out of here. I refuse to go on. Let me out.” By 180 volts, “Wallace” is shouting, “Ugh!!!! I can’t stand the pain! Let me out of here!”
The subject keeps going. “FAST: bird, car, train plane.” BUZZ. “Correct. SOFT: rug, pillow, hair, grass.” BUZZ. “False. 195 volts.” ZZZT.
“Owww!!! Let me out of here. Let me out of here. You have no right to keep me here! Let me out!”
“WET: day, towel, duck, cave.” BUZZ. “False. 210 volts.” ZZZT.
“Ugh!!! Ugh!!! Get me out of here. I’ve had enough. I won’t be in the experiment anymore.”
The man looks at Wallace. “I think something’s happening to that fellow in there.” He turns toward the partition. “Are you all right over there?”
“Please continue,” Williams tells him.
“Will there be any after-effects later on? I don’t think I’d like to take that myself, what he’s taking.”
“Please go on,” urges Wallace.
“Should I be a part of this?”
“Pardon me.”
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to see him myself before I go on.”
“That’s not how this experiment works.”
“I don’t think going against the man’s will is right. Doesn’t Mister Wallace’s health mean anything?”
“Go on.”
“Considering Mister Wallace, I don’t think I can go on.”
“It’s absolutely essential that you continue.”
“It’s against my grain to inflict pain on somebody.”
“The experiment requires that you go on.”
“In all fairness to Mister Wallace, I’m not going to continue going up the scale.”
“You must continue. If you don’t continue, we’ll have to discontinue the experiment.”
“Hmm.”
“You must go on. You have no other choice.”
“I have no other choice. Hmmm. I think I have. I do have a choice. If I have to hurt somebody for this research project of yours, I can’t properly go on with this. I’ve probably already gone too far.”
“You must continue.”
“If this was Russia, maybe. But this is America. I came here on my own free will, and now I don’t want any more of this. My ultimate authority is God, not your human authority.”
“Then we will end the experiment.”
“Yes, we will have to end it.”
We look back through the glass. Williams is talking to the gentleman who defied him. “This man wasn’t really being shocked. We were really interested in your reactions.”
“Um-hmm.”
“He’s actually working with us.”
“Oh.”
“And he wasn’t really getting shocked. He’s completely unharmed.”
“Oh, I see.”
“And his name’s not Mister Wallace. Mister McDonough, why don’t you come in and say hello to our guest before he leaves?” Wallace walks out beaming and the “teacher” looks profoundly relieved.
“Well, let me thank you very much for coming down. We certainly do appreciate you giving us your time.”
“Well, what do you think, Uncle Ren?”
I look at Dylan and Professor Milgram. “I’m stunned.”
Dylan smiles. “And . . .”
“So you’re proving that human beings act on their conscience?”
Dylan shakes his head. “Not quite.”
It’s such a good idea to turn this into a fictional story! Thoroughly enjoyable.
Very interesting!