Switching Off to See Dallas Summary and Analysis

Lessing writes that during the Korean War, the American Government is astounded to find that U.S. soldiers are confessing to crimes they have not committed. This discovery precipitates a government investigation into brainwashing techniques and indoctrination that has continued ever since, she writes. Lessing contends that such studies produce important information about how we view ourselves, and about how governments and priesthoods have used such techniques for thousands of years. Examples she gives included the Show Trials in Russia and Czechoslovakia, during which people confess to ridiculous crimes, and the witch hunts in America that prompt many confessions. Lessing believes everyone is brainwashed, to some degree, by their own country, through processes that are half-conscious or unconscious. She describes three well-known aspects of brainwashing: tension followed by relaxation, repetition and the use...