The movie "Grass and Trees in the World" originates from the Chinese myth and legend "Mu Lian saves his mother", and his son Mu Lian rescues his mother Moss Hua, who is deeply trapped in a pyramid scheme. In the movie, the pyramid scheme organization brainwashes people like a cult, making the originally honest and kind mother a whole person. Why do pyramid schemes make people mired in the quagmire? Let us start from a scientific point of view and find out a thing or two from the study of psychology.
When people talk about those who enter MLM organizations, they may wonder if there is something wrong with them, after all, they look so unreasonable, after all, "flies don't bite seamless eggs". In fact, everyone can be the target of recruitment by pyramid schemes or cults, because everyone may have weaknesses, and when people are in a vulnerable and sensitive state, they may become the target of attack.
In the movie, Moss Hua lost her job because her boyfriend's mother came to her door to scold her for not being worthy of her son, so she accepted her best friend's invitation to participate in the "publicity" activities of the MLM organization. Sitting on a bus with her are all "new partners" brought by acquaintances: college students who have just entered society, housewives who are despised by their husbands, middle-aged people who have failed their business and are suffering from cancer, and old ladies whose small shops have closed down...... MLM organizations will target people's weaknesses and weaknesses, such as illness, loss of loved ones, unemployment, moving to a new place, etc., and extend their claws in a targeted manner, and everyone may become their victims, such as the Japanese cult that once caused the poison gas incident in the Tokyo subway, recruiting members from elite social elites such as graduates of prestigious schools, lawyers, and doctors. Many celebrities and celebrities have also joined cults, such as the lead singer of the famous Japanese visual kei band X-Japan, who was deeply involved in cults for 12 years and became the targets of cult organizations and money-making tools.
MLM organizations and cults are similar in many ways. After encountering a target, recruiters use various forms of deception, such as withholding important information, distorting information and outright lies, and using seductive rhetoric to lure them to a "propaganda campaign". These organizations may seem friendly at first, and even offer a lot of benefits and assistance to potential targets, like a group of "like-minded" people getting together. In the initial stages, cult members may behave particularly sincerely, offering unconditional support and tolerance. When potential people embrace these benefits, they are lobbied to believe that greater benefits can only be achieved by making more commitments to the organization.
Most MLMs use recruitment, financial manipulation, and promises of huge profits as bait and also give their members meaning, purpose, and belonging, giving a clear, determined, and seemingly rosy picture to the lost and lost. On the other hand, older members will recruit close friends and family to join the organization, which will also make newcomers trust the organization in the first place and reduce their vigilance. In the movie, there is training on how to "pull people", "kiss first and then alien", "first near and then far", "first horizontal and then vertical", all of which teach how to start from the closest acquaintances.
Even when suspicions are raised, members are emotionally manipulated, and even repelled opponents under pressure from other members, and are tied more tightly. Psychologists who study these organizations propose a mechanism of "double bondage": once an individual wants to disengage, others pull it back and let it sink deeper.
In the movie, the leader of the MLM organization took advantage of this "backlash" to create a deeper brainwash of the members. He pretended to be a newcomer and accused everyone of participating in a "pyramid scheme", but in fact, they acted out a drama together: through "dissenters", he further strengthened the difference between "us" and "them", consolidated the identity attributes of the members, internalized the beliefs as part of the members' social identity, and influenced critical thinking, and then dispelled their concerns through various words and false cases, so that the new members embarked on the road of no return without hesitation.
Steven Hassan, an American psychologist who is an expert on cults, joined cults in the 1970s and conducted in-depth research on how cults manipulate their members after he broke away. He proposed a "BITE" model of cult control, which includes four aspects: Behavior Control, Information Control, Thought Control, and Emotional Control.
Behavioral control includes the control of the person, in addition to abiding by strict behavioral norms, such as when to get up, when to sleep, what to eat, what to do, and also to the restraint of personal freedom. For example, the cult organization in "Eliminating the Three Evils in the Periphery" gathers people on the island and demands the same dress, the same daily life, the same diet, and throws away all "things outside the body." In "The World of Grass and Trees", the MLM organization also requires members to complete "performance" and package themselves as "successful people".
Information control, which strictly limits the information to which members are exposed, especially those that violate their teachings. In addition to controlling contact, they also distort information and deceive members. Specifically, members are not allowed to contact the mass media and cut off contact with people, things, and things outside the organization, and members can only see information that has been distorted by the organization. At the same time, members are encouraged to monitor each other and adopt a joint sitting mechanism to ensure that members do not have access to outside information. The members are immersed in distorted information, and in the movie, even the recruiters who are about to enter the core are convinced that they are "not pyramid schemes".
Thought control is when members internalize the requirements and teachings of the organization, covering the original ideas and becoming their own thoughts. The first is to make members "not want to": not to think about the opposite of the organization, not to engage in critical thinking, but to accept the organization's ideas in their entirety. Establish an overall atmosphere so that members think that the organization is good for themselves, that the same ideas as the organization are good, and that the difference is bad, and that they don't think about it and don't let "negative thoughts" enter their minds. They have their own set of discourse and even behavioral norms, for example, in "The World of Grass and Trees", the MLM organization has established a completely obedient organizational atmosphere, where everyone claps their hands and shouts "You can go crazy, you can't accept your fate", and replace realistic thinking with the routines imposed on members.
Emotional control, the organization will also prescribe what emotions are good and what are not. For example, doubt, anger, and even homesickness are bad emotions that can "affect" members, so members should screen these emotions. The organization also controls the members by imposing certain emotions on the members, and uses these emotions to make the members dependent on the organization or the leader. The most important emotional means are fear, shame and guilt, such as being ashamed of their own identity, believing that their family, past, beliefs, etc. are flawed, and they have not been able to reach their maximum potential, instilling in them the fear of independent thinking, the outside world, the fear of being opposed by the organization and members, and making members feel that all problems are their own responsibility and must be absolutely obedient to the organization and leaders. In the movie, there is also a "rehabilitation center" that specializes in the elderly as the target of fraud, and in their "employee education", it is emphasized that the use of "accompaniment" and "coaxing" to make the elderly "afraid" and "guilty", the purpose is to use emotional manipulation to finally let the elderly fall into the trap.
The aforementioned lead singer, Dr. Hassan, eventually broke free from the cult's control, but breaking away from the cult was a long and even painful process for the former members. In the movie, as the pyramid scheme gang was seized by the police, Mulian's mother was also rescued, but her mother entered a state of dementia.
In fact, the influence of the cult will not disappear immediately. Swedish researchers recruited 11 former cult members through social networks and conducted online or telephone interviews. As for the experience after leaving the "organization", many former members described that for a long time, although they had physically left the cult, they were still psychologically trapped in it, their original way of thinking was seriously challenged, they were confused about their new world view, they could not clarify their new identity and belonging, they felt lonely, missed their friends, it was difficult to talk about their experiences, and former members reported that they had self-harm, alcoholism, and even suicide attempts. It will take a long time for them to "reboot" themselves, and after the chaos they have experienced, they will begin to be able to connect with others, find a sense of belonging and a new meaning in life. Just like at the end of the movie, Mulian carried Moss Flower into the deep mountain, and after both fell into the water, in order to protect her son, the mother awakened Moss Flower, and Moss Flower stood up from the water like a new life.
I hope that the in-depth interpretation from psychology can help everyone. If there are pitfalls and temptations around you, arm your mind with science and stay awake.