Research Paper

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Cults, to me, encapsulate my fascination of religion, and what thin of a line there is between the two. As for Jonestown in particular, I found a wondrous digital archive detailing the life of Jim Jones’, the life found in the city, the progression of the Peoples’ Temple, and most importantly “The Death Tape.” It has the last 40 minutes of Jim Jones’ speech as to why the society in Guyana should transcend above the mortal realm and go into his promised spiritual world.

One thing to mention – the majority of the Peoples’ Temple were minorities, specifically African-American. Another thing – he was an atheist who did not believe in God, and a white supremacist at that. I chose to analyze how his last 40 minutes was able to sway a colony of 900+ people to end their lives, including elders and children. I do so though a religious and historical lens, while incorporating an analysis of the rhetoric used. I also analyze different African-American voices that spoke in my different renditions of the transcript to encapsulate different emotions throughout the event, and different reactions to the task requested from the followers. I feel as though it molds with my theme (utopia) to show what exactly a promised land like Arca could be bearing. While the goal of Arca is to emphasize how unjust their punishment system is, it can also resemble Jonestown in the way of blind faith, and world-making through isolation.

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