Corpse-like obedience

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Corpse-like obedience (German: Kadavergehorsam, also translated as corpse obedience, cadaver-like obedience, zombie-like obedience, cadaver obedience, slavish obedience, unquestioning obedience, absolute obedience or blind obedience) refers to an obedience in which the obeying person submits unreservedly and passively to another's will, like a mindless, animated cadaver.

Origin

The term originated with the

Jesuit work by Ignatius of Loyola from 1553 (the Letter on Obedience[1]), also dated to 1558.[2] That text said, in Latin: "Et sibi quisque persuadeat, quod qui sub Obedientia vivunt, se ferri ac regi a divina Providentia per Superiores suos sinere debent perinde, ac si cadaver essent" which can be translated as "We should be aware that each of those who live in obedience must allow himself to be led and guided by Divine Providence through the Superior, as if he were a dead body".[3][2][4][1][5] The concept, described in the Jesuit context as "fabled and misunderstood",[6] has since been criticised by detractors of the Jesuit order as blind obedience.[7][8][9][10] Jesuit supporters, in turn, refer to it as the perfect obedience.[1][9]

Modern use

The term is often associated with

war crimes (see also Prussian virtues, German militarism, Befehlsnotstand, Führerprinzip, and superior orders).[22] The Law for the Restoration of the Professional Civil Service of 1933 has been credited with enforcing this idea in the Nazi German civil administration.[21] Adolf Eichmann, one of the major organisers of the Holocaust, invoked this concept in his defence during his post-war trial.[20][23][24]

The term has also been used in the context of other totalitarian regimes, such as communist states and parties.[31] The concept has been described[by whom?] as promoted by works such as The Communist Manifesto or Mein Kampf.[25]

The concept has also been mentioned in the context of extreme interpretation of military discipline.[5][32]

Some scholars have translated the term as zombie-like obedience.[27][30][33] A similar variation occurs in Nigerian afrobeat artist Fela Kuti's song "Zombie" (from the album of the same name), in which Kuti calls Nigerian soldiers zombies as a critique of the country's military government.[34][35]

References

  1. ^ a b c Pólit, Manuel María Espinosa (1947). Perfect Obedience: Commentary on the Letter on Obedience of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Newman Bookshop. p. 2.
  2. ^
    ISSN 2785-3233
    .
  3. ISSN 0008-4298
    .
  4. ISBN 978-90-04-28060-1
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7391-1401-8
    .
  6. ISBN 978-0-19-063963-1
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  7. ISBN 978-0-391-04194-3
    .
  8. ISSN 0008-4298
    .
  9. ^
    ISSN 1350-5076
    .
  10. ISSN 0266-3554
    .
  11. ISSN 0952-3367
    .
  12. PMID 18450939
    .
  13. ^
    ISBN 978-0-429-48515-2
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  14. ISBN 978-1-317-88700-3
    .
  15. ISBN 978-1-107-62783-3
    .
  16. ISBN 978-0-691-22157-1
    .
  17. ISSN 1558-2981
    .
  18. ISSN 1865-9039
    .
  19. ISBN 978-0-253-34718-3
    .
  20. ^
    ISBN 978-0-19-164983-7
    .
  21. ^
    ISBN 978-1-4616-3547-5
    .
  22. ^ [2][17][13][18][19][20][21]
  23. ISBN 978-1-351-76885-6
    .
  24. ISBN 978-1-84888-428-1
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  25. ^
    ISBN 978-90-04-46505-3
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  26. ISBN 978-90-04-46505-3
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  27. ^
    JSTOR 2499057
    .
  28. ISSN 0960-7773
    .
  29. ISSN 0002-7162
    .
  30. ^
    ISBN 978-90-474-1787-3
    , retrieved 27 March 2024
  31. ^ [25][26][27][28][29][30]
  32. ISSN 1911-026X
    .
  33. ISSN 1538-5000
    .
  34. ^ Jones, Owen. "The Story of Fela Kuti 'Gentleman' & 'Zombie'". Classic Album Sundays. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  35. ^ Lalwani, Vijayta (1 January 2020). "The Art of Resistance: 'Zombie' by Nigerian musician Fela Kuti questions repressive governments". Scroll.in. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
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