The Penguin And The Leviathan Analysis

Kulsum Pathan

20531570

Think Question 1

Throughout “The Penguin and The Leviathan”, Yochai Benkler talks about the idea of cooperation overpowering the idea of self interest. He comes up with the term, “the penguin” where he talks about humans not being chained to being perfect but more so being capable of virtue. He continues to talk about the term “the penguin” as one that is not run by the government or by the idea of the invisible hand (Benkler). This acknowledges the fact that we as humans are selfish but we do have qualities that enable us to cooperate with one and other and feel for those who don’t directly benefit us. There are many theories within the reading that imply to teamwork and cooperation. Benkler looks at cooperation form

Benkler states that “Nothing is more foundational to cooperation that communication” (Benkler). He also states that “communication is the one thing that is the most unambiguous, most dramatic effect on cooperation, both in experience and in the world” (Benkler). The idea of cooperation and teamwork go hand in hand and therefore these statements also relate to the idea of teamwork. This is why practicing communication is so important and crucial in cooperation and teamwork because without communication the two would either, not exist or not make it far in the measurement of success and what allows the next team to excel. The model of communication is valued so much, in out cultural moment because, we have moved forward from the ideology of being told exactly what to do and focusing only on the outcome. We’ve now shifted to the belief of making sure those who have a hand in the outcome, also see a personal outcome within themselves and their team. The modern culture is more based on human experience because it’s believed that is goes hand in hand with productivity and helps not only make the experience of the worker better but is also used as a motivation tool. Along with that is the impact social influence has on todays society. The reason as to why social influence is valued so much is because we live in a society where there is a constant need to belong and the only way to really belong is through conforming to the norms seen by these social influences. Benkler talks about the social influence the words “community” and “wall street” have on individuals (Benkler). During the study, the games were exactly the same but the names were different which shows that because of the social meaning put on these words. These social connotations on these words are only a mere example of how our social influences impact our everyday life and how it plays such a big part in our