Rumor, Fear, and the Madness of Crowds

by J.P. Chaplin

Martians, a reincarnated Irish woman, a dead movie star, an insane anesthetist, and an obsessed U.S. Attorney General ― these disparate characters have something in common. Each was at the center of an incident of mass hysteria, in which frightened, grieving, and otherwise disturbed people abandoned their common sense. This fascinating book by a prominent psychologist explores several intriguing case histories of mass hysteria, from "The Great Disappointment" of 1926, in which thousands of believers dressed in white to await Jesus' return, to UFO sightings and other extraordinary phenomena.
Author J. P. Chaplin examines historical incidents of mob mentality, including "The Last Days of Rudolph Valentino," which culminated in a New York City riot of 80,000 mourning fans; "The Secrets of the Nunnery," involving the sack of a Boston convent by an angry crowd in search of children's skulls; "The Martians Invade New Jersey," in which a radio drama was mistaken for a news broadcast; and other remarkable instances of mass delusion.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Reference, Sociology

191 pages, paper back

First published January 1, 1959

Reviews

[John Defrog: global citizen, local gadfly · Rating 3 out of 5]

William Gibson namechecked this book on Twitter awhile back, so I decided to check it out. Published in 1959, it’s meant to be an academic study of examples of mass hysteria in the US, including the Red Scare of 1919, McCarthyism, the War Of The Worlds broadcast, apocalypse preachers, UFO sightings and distraught Rudolph Valentino fans, among others. But there’s not much in-depth analysis of each event, and some of them really qualify more as examples of mass gullibility and pranks than hysteria. Also, J.P. Chaplin’s writing style isn’t exactly accessible. That said, it’s an interesting collection of anecdotes that manages by the end to make a larger point: (1) most of these events took place in the context of general fear and uncertainty over local, national and global events (i.e. both World Wars, the Cold War, anarchist bombings, sensationalist media, etc), (2) that fear and uncertainty is what makes us vulnerable to exploitation by demagogues and charlatans, and (3) the key is to understand those fears, what drives them and how to address them – because if we don’t, our enemies will. Given current events, I’d say he had a point.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to read, especially when you have a disintegrating paper copy complete with bookworm holes. Great writing style and it’s always interesting to peer into another time. I wouldn’t seek this out, there’s probably a more accurate, cohesive, up-to-date compilation you can read instead.