Your goal in this assignment is to try to explain of a movie character’s actions in light of the ethical theories that we have developed in this class. Is the person a consequentialist?

Assignment Description

Your goal in this assignment is to try to explain of a movie character’s actions in light of the ethical theories that we have developed in this class. Is the person a consequentialist? Is the person a deontologist? Someone who believes in virtue theory? How would you know? Why that ethical theory and not another? An alternative way to think about the goal of this assignment is to ask what ethical theory or idea is the movie making an argument for through the main character.

Normally, I would show a movie in class and have everyone write in response to that movie. For obvious reasons, we can’t do that this semester. So …

First, using whatever streaming service you have access to, watch a movie with a clearly identifiable main character. (You can also watch a movie that you may already own.) If horror is your thing, watch a horror movie. If action/adventure is your thing, watch an action movie. If you like rom-coms, watch a rom-com. My suggestion is to (a) watch something that you will enjoy and (b) watch something new to you.

The movie must be one of the ones we identified in class, though. I will distribute an approved movie list by the end of Wednesday, March 3.

Second, as you watch, take notes on what the main character is doing and, more importantly, what seems to be the motivation for any decisions that they make during the course of the movie. Again, the goal is to identify and explain the ethical theory embodied by the character.

Third, write a short piece (3-4 pp.) explaining who the character is as an ethical being. In doing so,

You will need to directly relate the material you have read and we have discussed in this class to the character and their actions–i.e., you will need to explain the ethical theory as part of explaining how the character embodies it.
You will need to provide specific examples of choices and actions made by the character in the movie and explain how they illustrate the ethical theory or idea.
Fourth, please remember that this is not a movie review. Your aesthetic judgments about the movie are immaterial to this conversation.

Fifth, that said, do not assume your audience has seen or knows about the movie. You ought to provide a little summary about the movie so that anyone can understand who the character is and why they have to make the choices that they do. Your main focus needs to be defining the character as an ethical being, however. If your essay has more summary of the movie than application of the ethical theories and ideas, you will have missed the point of the assignment (and won’t receive a good grade).

Some Technical Details

Audience: Not me! As you write this piece, think of a generic person reading a blog column or news site on the web. Doing so means that you cannot assume your audience has a firm understanding of any of the details–either about ethics or the movie–that you talk about in your piece. Doing so also means that you should use a relatively informal style of writing.

Length: 3-4 pages

Formatting:

Put your name on the paper.
Give your piece a title.
Use a standard, 12 point font.
Double space your lines.
Use 1″ margins.
Number your pages.
Citations: Citations are always appropriate. In a web-based piece, though, we will use links to the relevant sources (to increase the likelihood that our piece can be found by Google) in lieu of formal, academic citations. Try to do so here.