Shawshank Redemption: Moral Principles in the Movie

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Egoism
Utilitarianism
Five faces of oppression
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Tim Robbins stars as Andy Dufresne, a triumphant young banker who is verdicted to life custody for the killing of his wife and her lover. Andy is sent to Shawshank jail, a dour and miserable place where viciousness from both guards and other convicts is ordinary. Andy makes pals with Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding, a lifer who has already lived many years in the jail. Red is an expert in smuggling things and objects into the prison for the others. Red soon realizes that Andy is a most curious prisoner, though at first it seems to do him not very good – he is abused by other imprisoned

He starts getting both other captives and guards on his side when he proposes his help to one of the most disreputable guards with a tax matter in swap for bottles of chilled beer for everybody in his work party. From then on, Andy constantly seems to be running on one thing or another. He advances the prison’s small library, and assists those prisoners who wish to study. Over the years, he increases the respect of most of the other jailbirds and guards. More prominently, he never drops expectation of the future – a hope he attempts to bypass on to the other convicts. He never stops trusting in life’s opportunities, but to make the most of them he requires to be free.

Egoism

The matters of Egoism are revealed in the movie in lots of episodes, if not throughout the whole movie, as the circumstances of a state jail presupposes, that people end up to be humans, and start chasing only their personal aims. This may be observed in the character of Byron Hadley, who under the coverage of prisoners’ work made his dirty tricks with finances, and even retorts to murder in order to save his wealth “embodied” in Andy Dufresne’s skills. In this context, moral theory is absolutely neglected, as Hadley, being a strong believer on the one hand chooses the way of sin in his life.

Utilitarianism

As it has been stated above, the circumstances of the jail presuppose the egoistic environment. The same is with utilitarianism and pragmatism. Everyone chases his own aims, and cares just to survive and not to become crazy. According to Kant and Aristotle, the utilitarianism is a matter, in no way leading to the overall happiness, and t fact is that, jail has never been a place, where someone became happy. But inspite of all the reveals of pragmatism, imprisoned try to stay humans, and cooperate to survive, and get accustomed to the life in restraint.

From the viewpoint of Kantianism ethics are deontological, revolving entirely around duty rather than emotional feelings or end goals. All actions are performed in conformity with some fundamental principles; it is this that the moral worth of an action is judged in accordance to. Kant’s ethics make accent then only on the principle that underlies achievements and regards these to be good or bad exclusively on how they match to motive. Taking all these ideas into explanation, it is significant to mention, that Andy and Red were the most faithful friends, and all their actions can be regarded as highly moral through the prism of ethics and morality.

The continuation of Kant’s notions – moral relativism argues that moral or ethical proposals do not reproduce object and / or worldwide moral realities, but instead make argues connected to communal, cultural, chronological or individual situations. Moral relativists hold that no widespread standard survives by which to access an ethical proposal’s truth; moral subjectivism is thus the contrary of moral absolutism. From this viewpoint prison is not the place, where moral principles are observed, and the rules of imprisonment contradict any accepted norms, as the general moral principles of any jail community are: believe no one, ask for nothing and never being afraid of anything. Only the one who observes these rules will be able to stay alive and healthy, until finds really faithful friend, which is rather problematic there.

The virtue ethics, offering an account for a good life fail to explain the morality of the deeds in some particular context – like the escape (redemption) itself, as one, being imprisoned must serve the punishment till the very end, as the judicial system is a priory regarded as just, impartial and righteous. Regarding the matters of behavior by the main characters from this point of view the only fact is worth mentioning – Andy, Red, Brooks and other positive characters, which are in fact few in the story, did everything to gain better life in that jail community. Thus consequentialist and deontological notions often still utilize the term ‘virtue’, but in a limited sense, namely as a propensity or outlook to adhere to the system’s standards or rules. These very dissimilar senses of what comprises virtue, concealed behind the same word, are a possible source of perplexity.

Moral particularism is the regard that there are no moral standards and that moral judgment can be stated only as one settles on exacting cases, either genuine or imagined. Particularism, declares that there are no superseding standards that may be used in every case, or that can be conceptualized to apply to each case. For this viewpoint, the deeds by Andy can be justified without any exception: from his tolerance to walloping, exhausting labor and financial machinations having the final aim – to survive and escape, shutting a door with a bang.

Another point of morality, which may be discussed on the account of the movie, is the notion of care ethics, which states, that everyone should take care of the people surrounding him / her. Care ethics a theory about what makes actions right or wrong. It is one of a cluster of normative ethical hypothesis that were expanded by feminists in the second half of the twentieth century.

Five faces of oppression

According to Marion Young, oppression includes five categories, and these categories define the moral, sometimes physical condition of a human. Exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism, and violence are the obstacles which may interrupt one to be happy. As for the plot of the, movie, all the prisoners were subjected to cruel circumstances of imprisonment. They are exploited, marginalized, powerless to change their situation, they are under emotional and cultural pressure of Capt. Byron Hadley, and almost everyone experiences violence from the people staying near.

Exploitation is the relocate of the consequences of the labor of one communal group to profit another.

Marginalization is the procedure by which a whole grouping of people is banished from useful partaking in general life.

Powerlessness is something that all people experience from time to time; people from coerced backdrops even more, so it is stated, that the immobilized are those who lack influence or power those whom power is implemented without their exercising it; the immobilized are located so that they are obliged to take arranges and seldom possess the right to give them.

Cultural imperialism is how the leading connotations of a society render the meticulous standpoint of one’s own group imperceptible at the same time as they pigeonhole one’s group and mark it as the other

Conclusion

Sometimes all the moral principles become simply nominal, such as in the case of the occasions described in the movie, as some particular circumstances can not be treated as immoral without taking into account the surrounding situation, prerequisites and outcomes. Taking into account the ending of the movie, where Andy and Red started a completely new life and became closest friends, as soon after, Red is finally released on parole. After trying to cope with life outside prison (and being given the same job and apartment Brooks had had years earlier), he recalls his promise to Andy shortly before Andy’s escape. Red finds money and instructions hidden in the field, and eventually reunites with Andy in Zihuatanejo on the coast of Mexico.

References

Managerial Ethics: Moral Management of People and Processes. Ed. Marshall Schminke. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2006.

Rest, James R., and Darcia Narváez, eds. Moral Development in the Professions: Psychology and Applied Ethics. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2004.

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