Are there positive and negative consequences for being too loyal? Essay Draft

   Would you ever be willing to die for someone? While many people might immediately think about family and friends when asked if they would ever die for another, others may instead think about a celebrity or public figure. Sometimes in life we encounter situations in which our very trust in our beliefs are tested, pushed to the limit to see our true character. Remaining faithful to what or who you believe in is a quality in a person that is thought of very highly, sometimes even thought of as one of the best qualities to possess. But what happens when that very quality goes to the extreme, nearly fanaticism? This is what you may know as extreme loyalty, and it can be found in many different areas of life. Some of the most common types of extreme loyalty are towards people, social issues, religions or beliefs and countries. In many cases of extreme loyalty, people had been willing to do anything for their obsessions, even die for them. Is this healthy? While there are some benefits to extreme loyalty, it remains a character trait that is mainly detrimental to a person and to society. Fanaticism has commonly occurred throughout history towards heads of state, religions, social causes and beliefs and in personal relationships.

   In many cases throughout history, many heads of state believed in totalitarianism, a concept in which one person exercises total control over a country. A totalitarian leader would want the people to be extremely loyal to the government and therefore would only let themselves be portrayed in a positive light to the public. The y would even make themselves seem God-like and flawless. Due to much propaganda citizens of these countries generally became extremely loyal to their leader, willing to do anything to support them. It could be said that totalitarian leaders brainwashed their subjects in a way, causing immense devotion towards themselves from the public, unfortunately oftentimes resulting in immense harm towards others. A lot of totalitarian leaders were thought of as an ideal people with no faults and were worshiped excessively. To prove their loyalty towards the head of state, many people acted out, doing things like gathering into mobs to attack people who went against what their leader told them to do, robbing places, and even murdering others because they believed that it was just to do so. A very well-known example of this particular type of loyalty would be the Nazi party of Germany, who committed mass genocide against Jewish people in support of their leader Adolf Hitler’s anti-Semitic views. As in the case of Hitler and his Nazis, many times the public’s view of their leader could be severely twisted. This was because of their idealized vision of the person that they have created in their heads, resulting in harm towards others.

   Undoubtedly loyalty is required in any form of friendship or relationship in order to function properly, however, there are many reasons that extreme devotion is very unhealthy in a relationship. First of all, if the loyalty you feel to another is not reciprocated in the same way, it can lead to your loyalty being taken advantage of and used. Sometimes in friendships, one person gives too much and the other is not grateful or appreciative, leading to dissatisfaction in the relationship. Also, loyalty can be thought of in terms of fidelity as well. Perhaps you are incredibly loyal to your significant other, but they might cheat on you with somebody else. This may cause acts of vengeance stemming from emotional pain caused by the lack of loyalty shown from your partner. Extreme loyalty also causes extreme hurt when you are betrayed by a person you are close to, and many crimes happen due to betrayal. Furthermore, if the loyalty from the other person is reciprocated to the same high degree that you are loyal to them, it can cause a very unhealthy relationship of devotion where you are completely dependent on one another. In literature, William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet  showcases a pair of lovers so desperately in love and loyal to each other that in complete blindness they kill themselves by the end in a misunderstanding. Extreme loyalty in relationships is volatile and should be avoided.

   Similarly to loyalty towards heads of state, fanatical loyalty to religion and social issues often causes violence and disorder. Religion is one of the most widely debated topics and has sparked many conflicts over what is correct and what is incorrect. It is one of the most personal topics out there and is very heavy in the belief component. Therefore, many people become much attached to what they believe in, wishing to defend it from persecutors at all costs. Many people choose to use violence to show support for their religion against others because of what they believe in and their loyalty to their beliefs. These acts have sparked many wars throughout history, and there are still conflicts all over the world that are mainly based on religious beliefs. In relation, loyalty to a cause can result in extreme acts as well. Social issues involve so many different people’s opinions and some people believe so deeply in what they are fighting for that they become rebellious and may harm properties and opposing people. Many vocal supporters of different causes ignore other beliefs and ideas even if they make more sense than their own beliefs because of their blind loyalty to a cause or religion.

   Often forgotten is the concept of forced loyalty, commonly seen in a situation I have previously mentioned, totalitarian governments. As in many cases, not everybody in a country will be happy with a leader. However, in totalitarian governments, the leader enforces that people who speak out against them or believe in views different to their own will be persecuted and harmed. Therefore, many citizens are forced to be extremely loyal to their leader unless they wish to be hurt. A common misconception is that you have to like something to be loyal to it, but that is very untrue. Loyalty only requires faithfulness, therefore forced loyalty, while unpleasant, is quite plausible. The problem with forced loyalty is that it can be so personally dissatisfying, and it can be hard to continually prove your loyalty to something that you do not believe in. Others may also be hostile towards them because of what they have been forced to be loyal to because of the association. Overall, forced loyalty is completely detrimental to the person who loyalty has been forced upon.

   While there are many negatives to being too loyal to something, there are some benefits. Often a quality that people look for in others, loyalty can tighten the bonds of friendship like no other quality can. Knowing that you can depend on one another to always defend and protect each other builds trust. It also showcases the reliability of people and makes people comfortable with each other. If there is mutual loyalty in a relationship, the two parties might be more willing to open up to each other because of the trust that was created out of faithfulness to each other. People sometimes consider loyalty to be the most important aspect of a relationship. It is easy to see why, as without a faithfulness to each other there is no trust and a possible lack of fidelity.

   As I mentioned before, fanatical loyalty towards totalitarian rulers can be extremely harmful towards your mental state. However, there is an aspect of positivity to such loyalty. Oftentimes, extreme dedication towards your government or leader results in rewards. These rewards could be through finances and also through the fulfillment of promises made to the public. Even in democratic governments, there is an element of mutual participation. If the public is loyal to the government and does what is required of them (voting, etc.), the government will usually fulfill the promises that they have made to the citizens perhaps before an election. Also, companies often will give gifts to customers that have been with them for a number of years, perhaps through free merchandise that the company produces. In this way, loyalty can be very beneficial to a person.

   In spite of the benefits of extreme loyalty mentioned above, they do not take away the fact that extreme loyalty is mainly detrimental to a person’s character and to the people around them. The fact that fanatical loyalty has led to many conflicts, such as wars, genocides and other crimes is alarming and should not be ignored. Heads of state, especially totalitarian leaders who are persuasive speakers, can influence a great number of people wishing to prove their loyalty to do some very terrible crimes. Under such totalitarian rule, many members of a country might be forced to be loyal to their leader. This could cause immense unhappiness and a loss of self-belief. Extreme devotion in personal relationships can often have disastrous consequences, more so if the loyalty one feels to another is not reciprocated at the same intensity. One can find themselves being taken advantage of or even being betrayed, causing emotional pain. Even worse are the consequences that extreme loyalty towards religions or social issues can often have. Large-scale global conflicts have occurred because of such loyalty and we still struggle with problems derived from that type of fanaticism today. Overall, we must understand that when we have become too loyal towards something, nearly fanatical, we need to stop and evaluate our actions. If we do not, we could do things that might affect our futures in a largely negative way.