Explain How The Scholar's Historical Context And Life Experiences Shaped Their Thinking

Chomsky Media Control Research
Name
Institution
Chomsky Media Control Research
Explain how the scholar’s historical context and life experiences shaped their thinking.
Born in 1928, Noam Chomsky is a man who is described by many as a linguist, an anti-war activist, and an academic who has been vocal against the existing political systems. Chomsky’s work is widely read, and he has been key in introducing several groundbreaking and overly controversial theories about the current and past societies. He grew up during America’s Great Depression and therefore, felt its full wrath. Albeit being born into a middle-class family, he witnessed numerous counts of injustices around him. A good example which he has mentioned severally is when he witnessed security officers beating women because they were striking outside a textile plant. Everything around him seemed confusing but unknowingly to him, he was getting nurtured and groomed towards a particular school of thought. His mother was active in politics, and at age 13, Chomsky was travelling from Philadelphia to New York while listening to people’s varied perspectives. From these experiences, Chomsky’s thinking was being shaped. Another person who helped to shape his thinking is his uncle who had little formal education but who also seemed to have a different and shrewd understanding of the world and its workings. It is through this life, past and present experiences, as well as the people around him that his perspective was shaped. He could see what was happening and also be present as different people gave their views and this helped him to look at things from different points which led to his famous stance.
Summarize what the intellectual contributions of the scholar are.
One of the greatest contributions of Chomsky was that everyone or the public could understand or comprehend politics, economics, the inner workings of a government, and also be able to make their own decisions. In a world where people are divided into classes, the elite class often seems to separate or segregate themselves and believe that others should be working for their good because they own the means. In one instance, Chomsky notes that the elite or the ones in the specialized class often “need something to tame the bewildered herd and that something is this new revolution in the art of democracy: the manufacture of consent” (1991). The above simply means that those who consider themselves elite often seek to always stay on top while making all the decisions that matter at the expense and on behalf of the public. However, to do this, they have also to tailor the bewildered in a way that gifts them power albeit abstract. “The bewildered herd is a problem. We’ve got to prevent their roar and trampling. We’ve got to distract them. They should be watching the Super bowl or sitcoms or violent movies” (1991). The above are but simple ideas which are used to keep the public busy while the specialized class runs the country. However, Chomsky is against this kind of thinking and believes that everyone can understand the workings of the government and be able to make the crucial decisions. He believes that if called to take part, the bewildered...