A Film Analysis

After watching the film, Source Code, it has come to my attention the moral ethics involved with the film. To give a mini back story, a soldier who is half brain dead is kept alive by a defense program named “source code”. The half brain dead man, Colter Stephens, is used in another dimension of time so he can help figure out who a bomber is on a commuter train. The man figures out who the bomber is while also figuring out that he’s being kept alive for the sake of the program. One of the coordinators in charge of the program, Colleen Goodwin, is faced with an ethical and moral decision at the end of the movie. Colter asks to be terminated at the end of the mission even if it means that he won’t go on any more missions and save more people. Colleen Goodwin eventually decides to take Colter all the way off life support and terminate his life. This situation reminds me of the classic category having to do with moral decision making. What makes Goodwin decide to do this act? How does she weigh it on the scale of right and wrong? Is keeping Colter alive morally ethical because it saves peoples’ lives or is letting him choose to die because he will never fully awaken the morally ethical decision because that’s what he wants. There are many theories that can be discussed that either contradict or back up the reasoning of Goodwin’s act in terminating the soldier. To back up Goodwin, John Locke’s Right theory has been brought up to my attention. It basically says that all mankind has a duty to respect each others rights that are given to humanity just because they are human. Goodwin is respecting Colter’s right as a human  to do what he wants to his body. A theory that contradicts Goodwin’s reasoning is the utilitarianism version of the theory of Consequentialists. This theory basically says that an action is alright to do if it brings forth the most good for the largest amount of people involved. If Goodwin hadn’t had terminated Colter, he would have been able to save many more lives as well which would have been more beneficial to a larger group of people. Both theories make sense when looked at in their perspective, but I would have to agree with the theory that John Locke talks about. In my opinion, if a person commits a heroic act but was forced to commit it, then the act cannot be a moral act because he did not choose it himself. It won’t be an act of good service to humanity because it does not come with good intention from the person committing it. I believe that morality, even if forced, does not prove that it is “right”? I can force someone to be good to the poor and give all their money and clothes against their will, but does that essentially make it right? I think that if the heart is not right, then the deed isn’t right. If Colter doesn’t want to live in a half brain dead body, and doesn’t want to save peoples’ lives, the ethical and moral thing would be for him to let himself choose what he wants to do.

Reference:

Source Code. Dir. Duncan Jones. Perf. Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga. Summit Entertainment, 2011. HD-DVD.

Group Meeting October 30, 2013

Question #2

When I began thinking about the type of classic category I tended to use for making ethical choices, I was stuck. To me it is one of those things that seem situational; you do what you do when it happens. If I had to absolutely choose I would say I most likely fall under the consequentialism. In the category of consequentialism there are three main sub-categories. These sub-categories are Ethical Egoism, Ethical Altruism, and Utilitarianism. I believe that I have used one of these categories at least once when making major ethical decisions. For example, when it came to picking out the college I wanted to attend, I had a lot of factors I had to think about. I had to think about my parents. I had to think about their money and how close my college was to them. I had to think about my boyfriend, who I had been dating for only three years at time and how it would affect our relationship. However, in this situation, I used Ethical Egoism. I made the decision with my best interest in mind. I had to do this major life decision for me. I, of course, held these thoughts in my head about my parents and boyfriend and remained understanding. Ultimately, it was my choice no matter how it affected others. I have used Ethical Altruism a few times in my life. This tends occur in more minor ethical choices. I always want to please others, so if I can afford the loss I will let it be in favor of everyone else but me. Most importantly, I use Utilitarianism more frequently than the other two sub-categories. I use this, because I believe it is crucial in finding a balance for what is important for you and others. I am a human, as others are, and all of our feelings matter. I am not a fan of self-harm to make others happy. As well as, I am not a fan of selfishness. Balance to me is essential to live a healthy life. 

Ethical Choices

October 23, 2013

            I base most of my decision making on Ethics of Virtue; based on wisdom, temperance, courage and justice. I feel that I have good morals are based on character. In making decisions I and in creating relationships I look for the best character traits in every situation. Issues can arise that are “just life” or situational but true character shines through even in the rough times. I believe in treating others the way that I would like to be treated. Behavior is a true reflection of my inner moral character. I have not always made the best decisions in life. I have made decisions based on what I wanted to do instead of what was the right thing to do. During these decisions that I now look back and regret, I knew the right answer and chose differently. I can also relate to duty-based ethics in that I believe in the authority of God and the bible and I also believe that rules are in place to keep us safe. There are instances that rules could be broken based on the situation at hand and what is the best decision at the time. I am a believer in assessing each situation and looking at the consequences on those actions, especially after making mistakes in decision making in the past. In this regard, I would be a believer in the Consequentialist ethics theory. I believe in looking for a solution that is best for everyone involved, treating each person as a human being. In summary, I can relate to each of these theories; so which one is right? My best answer at this time for my own personal life is that each situation is assessed on an individual basis. Each decision is made to the best of my ability at the time that I am making it.

Virtue Ethics

If I were to choose a classic category that describes how I make ethical choices, I would have to say that I would go with the theory of virtue ethics. I believe that I’ve made “the right” decisions because of the virtues of life that I have grown up with and cultivated since I was younger. One thing that I think makes me someone who follows the theory of virtue ethics is that I think that it has to do a lot with upbringing including where I was specifically placed in life and how my parents reacted to the good and bad things that I did. Whenever I would reflect in my behavior a good habit of character, I would get positive feedback and encouragement. This positivity and encouragement helped me develop the virtues in hopes that one day I would habitually act on throughout my life. For instance, my family put an emphasis on the virtue of honesty and stressed its importance to me throughout my childhood. An example of this would be if I had not cleaned my room and my mother had passed by room and had already known that I had not cleaned it and asked me about it. I would be given a choice to choose honesty. If I had chosen to live in honesty, and told her the real state of my messy room, then I would continue developing a positive ethical virtue. Since this virtue of honesty became a pattern in my life, I see myself as an “honest person”. I see myself as an honest person not because honesty was forced on me, but because I chose to do the moral thing over and over again until it became who I am. A lot of people try to separate character, morality, and immoral things, but I think it is the intertwining of all of these things that makes up a person’s true character and essentially influences his or her ethical and moral decisions in life. Earlier when I talked about my upbringing, I wasn’t just talking about my parents on earth. I also think that God has a way of teaching His children how to behave because He gives us the Holy Ghost. He gives us a guide through life, situations, and the strength for us to develop and grow as a person of moral virtue.

Final Post on Question 1

When it comes to the question “Who is writing the script of my life?” I believe everyone will have their own answer.  Most people would fall under the categories of free will, determinism, or compatibilism. I personally believe in compatibilism. The interesting thing is, I think we have to treat everyone’s ideas equally. Nobody knows what the answer really is to the question. Therefore, nobody can be we wrong.  Everyone has their theory and most even have supporting facts to go with their theory. In the end, we don’t know. There is no way anyone can know. It is simply a belief or theory. As a Christian, I do believe that God has a plan for me. I believe he knows where he wants me to go, but I don’t believe he has completely taken away my freedom. I always tell people that I can’t wait to get to heaven, so I can finally asked God all my questions. I literally want to sit in front of him and get all the answers I have been wondering about for years. God has the answers. God knows if it is free will, determinism or compatibilism. Overall, I don’t believe it matters what people think. Everyone will have their beliefs and thoughts on this subject but I don’t believe it will affect society as a whole. I also don’t believe it will cause much harm within in a society. Since it is impossible to know the answer for sure we simply have to conclude that everyone has their ideas. We may disagree with their ideas, but I believe everyone should respect them. 

LIFE

 

October 10, 2013

                                                                             Life

            I do believe that determinism has played a role and will continue to play a role in my life. Certain things have already been pre-determined by God to take place in my life. I believe that certain things have been placed strategically in a specific place and they may be there for reasons that I will never understand while I am on this Earth. I believe that relationships have been sent my way for seasons of time and some for a lifetime. I believe that Free Will does exist also. I believe that Jesus gives us free will and part of that is choosing to trust in him through faith. I believe that he gives us free will so that we can choose for ourselves to make the best decisions possible. Free will also gives us the chance to mess up; and in turn learn from it. With all of this being said, I agree most with the Compatibilism theory. I do still wonder, why? When things happen in life that are so difficult to understand, I wonder what could this possibly be teaching me. At the same time, I have learned that there is indeed something to be learned and that will be revealed at the appropriate time. I make a special effort to embrace every situation with a grateful and happy heart. Trials make us stronger. Waiting builds character. My specific job is not exactly my passion, but I am there for a specific time and a specific reason. I would love to do more with helping build others up, that is my passion. But, maybe I can do that where I am and I don’t even realize it.

My Path

When I reflect on the impact of discovering the meaning of free will and determinism in my own life, I find myself feeling incredibly blessed because as of right now, I have a clear direction of where I’m going in life. I feel blessed by this because I’m the kind of person who likes to have a plan. I am the person who uses a written planner instead of my iphone. I even color coordinate my day so I know the importance of assignments to get accomplished. Therefore, I have security in knowing ever since 10th grade of high school, that I want to go after a profession in nursing. Nursing has been on my heart and mind for a long time, and the passion to get through the hard classes has kept me going even through difficult times. I truly believe the reason why I have kept up with this major is because God has put it on my heart. He’s graciously given me the strength as well as the resources to go to an amazing college such as Belmont with a stellar nursing program. God has placed me strategically in a family that supports my idea of becoming a nurse as well as placed me in a financially stable home that can help send me to college. I think that these events that I had no control over has to do a lot with the topic of determinism. On the other hand, I was given a choice to choose nursing as a major when I initially came to college. I wasn’t forced by God or anyone to choose the path I’m on. I was just given the opportunity, and I took it. The path was only made possible and probable by the circumstances that God helped orchestrate. For instance, if I was born half way around the world in a rural area that only allowed young girls to farm instead of go to college, then my chances of becoming a nurse would have been dimmed to say the least. The reflection of my life and where I have been placed on this earth as well as the circumstances that give me the choice to choose my path, have really given me a sense of incredible awe and thankfulness. It’s crazy how the passage of life takes a person, and I’m so excited that it’s only just the beginning for me. 

The Tenth Man: An example of Compatibilism

The tenth man was definitely a confusing tale. In the beginning, you felt for these men stuck in the German prison. They were going insane only trying to find a way to get through the hard time. The guards came in and that’s when they told them, they would have to choose three men to die. When Chavel pulled the “x” from the shoe, it was devastating. As a reader, we didn’t want him to die. We didn’t want anyone to die. However what came next was shocking, he began pleading for his life. He ended up selling everything he owned, in order for another man to die in his place. This man, Janvier, gave everything to his sister and mother. Through many many events, Chavel fell in love with Janvier’s sister. When there was a conflict, Chavel jumped in front of her to save her life and ended up dying. The interesting thing about this story is I have hard time deciding if it is a tale of determinism or a tale of compatilbilism. I can definitely see the argument for both sides. However, to me, the story is a great example of compatibilism. In the story, God’s ultimate destiny or end for Chavel was to die, more specifically even to die by gun shot. This was his path. He made choices, however, to delay this plan. It caused him agony and guilt. This very well could have been God telling him he made the wrong choice, telling him it was morally wrong to do what he did. However, God knew Chavel’s end. Chavel was destined to die, destined to be shot. This is exactly what happened. He made his choices and chose a different direction or path. However, the bigger picture is simple. His plan was set. God put him back on his path. In the end, Chavel was shot and died. 

The Tenth Man

 

October 3, 2013

                                                            The Tenth Man

             The Tenth Man is a novel about a diverse group of men that are held as prisoners during World War II. The prison guards decide that three of them will die; it is up to the men to decide who that will be among them. They decide the use a draw system by which each man will pull a piece of paper from the pool. A man named Chavel pulls the losing lot and immediately goes into a defense mode. He is overcome with the reality of his destiny. At this moment he seems to have the free will to make the decision to trade this lot for his worldly riches. He offers all of his money to another man; in exchange for a paper that will keep him alive. This decision may be one that he feels as though he has control over but in the end it is a matter of determinism because he dies anyway. After he is saved from the death in the prison camp, he goes back to his “old house” that he doesn’t own anymore. He disguises himself so that no one in the town will recognize him. The sister of the deceased man is looking for Chavel and hates him; so therefore he doesn’t feel like he can reveal his true identity. Maybe the deterministic factor is that he was supposed to meet the sister…. Could it be that falling in love with her was his actual destiny? The story is a combination of free will and determinism; making the theme run through the compatibilism theory. Or maybe I see it that way because I have agreed with that particular theory the entire time.

Determinsm and Free Will: The Tenth Man

When I think about determinism and free will, I see two conflicting theories in which people have a hard time figuring out which one should dominate over the other. Can one choice in life affect the path that was predetermined for me? Or can I get away from that choice? Basically the question is are my choices going along with a predetermined route that I will end up on eventually no matter what?

As I think about these things, I am reminded of a book I recently read called The Tenth Man. It is a book about a man named Louis Chavel who was imprisoned in a Nazi-run establishment. Chavel cheats death by offering all he owns to a man who takes his place and is shot instead. The man’s name was Janvier. The rest of the book involves the journey of Chavel as he ends up at his old home that he originally sold off to the man who died for him. Chavel works for the family that belonged to the man that died for him. Ironically, Chavel ends up being shot. He died by gunshot just the way he would have died if he hadn’t have bought a way out of death back in prison. Chavel’s life looked as if his fate was to die without reaching old age except the road he took to death did stall him some time. During this “stall”, Chavel had a change of heart; he finally feels pity for the man who died for him. As Chavel is bleeding to death, he thinks to himself, “Poor Janvier, he thought - the cinder track. He began to sign his name, but before he had quite finished he felt the water of his wound flowing immeasurably: a river, a torrent, a tide of peace...he never knew that his signature read only Jean-Louis Ch... which stood of course as plainly for Charlot as for Cheval. A crowning justice saw to it that he was not troubled. Even a lawyer’s meticulous conscience was allowed to rest in peace.” (Graham, 149) I think the peace that this author is talking about is the peace that comes from forgiveness of sins. God grants Cheval this peace that he wouldn’t have found if he had died in prison. So, even though Cheval made the choice to cheat his way out of death once, he also was given the opportunity to experience peace before death that he wouldn’t have gotten if he had been shot to death in prison. 

Life is full of twists and turns that are due to the choices that we make as well as the things that happen to us against our will. Call it fate or not, life is given for us to live out whether it be short or long. Our actions do indeed influence our outcome just as Chavel’s actions influenced the experiences he had in his life. These experiences eventually influenced his attitude in the outcome of his life. 

Reference: Greene, Graham. The Tenth Man. New York: Washington Square

Press, 1985. Print.

Group Meeting October 3, 2013