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The Iceberg Metaphor

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Synopsis

Chapter 1 - The Obedience Study

There's a lot of ways on how children were raised but one thing we can all agree is how we are taught of obeying our parents. We were trained to be obedient, and people were usually raised in a way that a loving parent would do like if you've done something bad you'll be scolded and lectured about the things that would happen if you disobey them. Unless your parents were Asian aside from the scolding there was the spanking.

I grew up in a painful way, physically.

I don't remember how old I was when my father started to beat me. All I remember was it was horrible and depressing.

My father was always intoxicated, and he loved to beat me like it was his hobby.

I was never the favorite kid and because of that I grew up with extreme anger, but I never really showed it.

I have a brother who is the favorite kid but it was understandable because he was the one who supplied my father's habit. He is a pilot often he is not around, so I was always left with my father. My brother is so nice to me which I hated.

He portrayed the perfect brother and he knows our father's brutality, but he will always tell me that I should understand our father, that he was sick ever since our mother died while giving birth to me. Cliche, but happens. How cruel of him to remind me constantly the reason why, but like a good sister he wanted I obeyed.

As a kid, I'm a curious potato and I liked to read kinds of stuff especially psychological ones.

It was my seventeenth birthday and my brother gave me a book about psychological experiments and I loved it very much. I liked how the human psyche can be studied, explore, and experimented. With that, I decided to take up a degree in psychology.

I can say I excelled in my first two years, but I was never recognized by my father.

Third-year came and individually we must do our first experimental research. I was excited because finally, I can conduct my plan which I've always wanted to try ever since my seventeenth birthday.

So, I asked my loving brother to convince my great father to participate in my research.

Like an obedient person, he complied.

He successfully made my father participate. Isn't my father obedient? Or both? My father was easily tricked because he knew my brother would give him money and he doesn't care about my experiments and shits.

So, I asked my brother to buy all the equipment I needed, and he returned full-handed.

The next day I briefed them about my "research".

First, I explained that they need to draw a card randomly which will be their assigned roles. My father was the student and Michael was the teacher.

Then I strapped my father to an electric chair which I told him was a fake one just like a massage chair. Also, he needed to answer the question the teacher would ask him wrongly.

Afterward, I asked my brother to be seated in front of the shock generator in the next room. I created the room with division just like how interrogation room works.

My father and Michael can only hear each other and I'm in the same room as Michael. My role is the experimenter and I'll guide the teacher throughout the experiment.

As the teacher, he would ask questions to the student if the student failed to answer he will be electrocuted starting with 30 volts but will gradually increase with 15 volts as the mistakes continued.

The shock generator that was connected in the chair have switches which were labeled "Moderate" which is 75-120 volts; "Strong" which is 135-180 volts and lastly "Danger" which is 375-420 volts and the remaining switches were labeled as "XXX" indicating that they were the highest voltage.

I told the teacher that the chair was fake, and it would only make noise.

I also told him that our father would act as hurt and supposedly he shouldn't know these but I'm going against the ethical standards of this research because I needed to pass this course.

Like an obedient, loving, and kind brother he obeyed. With that, we get started.

I gave my brother a set of questions he would ask my father.

The teacher started with "What is your name?," the student replied, "I don't know."

The teacher looked at me and I ordered him to press the generator and the student grunt a little.

The teacher asked again "Do your regret hurting Nicola?"

The student replied "Yes." my heart was joyed but I knew it was a lie.

So, I instructed the teacher to press the generator thrice with that my father screamed. My brother then again looked at me and asked, "Is father okay?" then I replied "of course it was all an act! Don't worry father is just being obedient."

The teacher then asked again "Do you blame Nicola when your wife died? ?" the student said "No." Liar!

I lost my control and I was the one who pressed the shock generator and I pressed "Strong"

He then shouted "It hurts! I don't want to continue anymore, she's killing me Michael!" but I didn't care instead I mouthed Michael to carry on.

"Is there a chance for you and Nicola to reconcile?" Michael asked.

I've been waiting for this moment to come.

I can feel my heart pounding.

I can't see our father but I can hear him breathing hard.

"No." he replied. I knew it! I set the shock generator to "Danger" then pressed it. You know that romantic moment when someone said that your voice is like a music to my ears? I can totally agree, not romantically but painfully good.

The experiment continued and all we heard was our father's grunting and screaming.

It became louder as the question reached seventh. My brother looked uncomfortable and he always asked me if father was okay and it irritated the shit out of me, but I smiled and told him he'll see it later.

On the eighth question, the teacher asked, "Are you ready to die?" the student didn't answer. So, I ordered him to ask again but there was no reply. So, I told him silenced was considered as wrong. I can see my brother was starting to feel uneasy and it made me happy.

"Look at me, you have to continue for the sake of my research," I said.

Again, as an obedient brother, he complied. He pressed the "XXX" twice which was the highest level. I'm on ecstasy but my brother wasn't. He immediately runs to the next room and saw our dearest father cooked and burnt. I followed him and saw him on the floor crying that scene gave me delight.

As he was weeping, I told him "Brother, how obedient are you?"