Prospects for Establishing a Critical Society as Described by Graham Sumner

Critical thinking is a vital tool for eliminating and solving problems in the society. In 1906, William Graham Sumner envisioned a critical society in his book, Folkways. He said that best men are produced in a society that is grounded on the critical habit of thought (Sumner, 1963). Critical thinking makes people to become slow in belief. Rather than holding things with certainty, they proceed by examining the issues at stake and making the inferences later.

Summer outlined the prospects for achieving a critical society, and among them,the most significant is education. A society must present education as the most critical faculty to its people. Only then can it produce good citizens. The critical faculty is achieved through training and teaching (Sumner, 1963). It gives people a sense of mental power and the habit of critical thought. Society will be able to think critically when it starts examining issues and testing them before openly accepting them. They first establish the extent of their reality before embracing them.

Critical thought offers assurance against deception, fallacy, illusion, and misconception of oneself and otherworldly situations. According to Graham Sumner, critical thinking is the tool that will bring desired changes to individuals and the overall society (Sumner, 1963). When used effectively, it will eliminate cajolery and prejudice in the society

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