Essay Example on Life & Death at Sea: Exploring Utilitarianism in Morality

Introduction

It was such a provocative and suspenseful high seas drama. The film describes how it might be, after being faced by a challenging situation where terrible choices are required between either life or death decisions. The film's focus is on how an ocean ship sinks, leaving some passengers dead and others wounded and struggling for life, which causes panic that influences the criteria used by the main character to save lives (Van, 2016). I feel that the film explored utilitarianism ideas in moral dilemmas due to how, as individuals, we should sacrifice a few to save a majority with chances of surviving. I understood utilitarianism following how the main character behaved in making the choices. I would have made the same move the main actor made since the alternatives were finite, and time was running out.

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Film Title: "12 Angry Men"

It was an exciting film that showed me how an individual could think morally in a group with opposing opinions. The film explains how people can make judgments following a situation in need of ethical choices. It focused on a jury's deliberations in a capital murder case, which influences how people testify against others who are accused of a crime (Ali, 2016). I felt the film explored the idea of rights and how we sometimes require to judge someone based on evidence-based proof. I understood it is rights following how the court leaves it upon the jury to make choices on whether the accused boy is guilty or innocent. I would have convinced the rest just as the single juror did since there was no enough evidence to term the accused guilty.

Film Title: "It's A Wonderful Life"

This was a thoughtful film that made me appreciate the importance of being morally upright. The film described how it might feel like being overwhelmed by family obligations and a sense of responsibility toward their society and leaving a life never anticipated for at all. The film's focus is on how the man is tied by a loan company founded by his father and fails to travel to prevent a rich man from seizing the entire town (Roose, 2018). It is my feeling that deontological ethics is explored here. I comprehended deontology based on the morality of an act on being either right or wrong rather than on the action's consequences. I would not have contemplated ending my life since life is very precious.

Film Title: "House on Haunted Hill"

It is a horrifying film that has made me perceive unethical behavior and what it portrays. The film described how it might be like being faced by a situation where unethical choices are needed and how people behave under love for money. Its focus is on how people can value money rather than their own lives, especially after being dared to spend 12 hours in a haunted house for $10,000 each, as stated by Leeder, (2011). Here, I felt that the idea of exploration is a virtue and how we are, at times, judged by our characters rather than our actions. I comprehended virtue following how the rich man endangers the individuals' lives and how the individuals reacted to the challenge by making the choices of going for the money. I would not have put my life in danger for money which is greediness.

Film Title: "The Jackie Robinson Story"

It is a great film that assisted me in perceiving the importance of self-determination and good morals. It described the feeling of being in a situation whereby the other people discriminate on color, and choices of pursuing life dreams have to prevail. The film focused on how a black person among the whites shows his great determination in playing baseball, which influences how white people practice racism (Edelman, 2011). I felt that the film explored the idea of existentialism and how we need to be free as responsible individuals determining our developments through acts of the will rather than being put down by what other people say or think about us. Here, I understood existentialism following how the main character boldly interacted with the whites and the choices he made. If I was in the same position, I would have taken the same move since we are all human beings regardless of the color.

References

Ali, M. A. N. (2016). 12 Angry Men: A Legal Perspective. Al-Fikr Al-Shurti, 78(3869), 1-24. http://doi:10.12816/0032108

Edelman, R. (2011). The Jackie Robinson story A reflection of its Era. NINE: A Journal of Baseball History and Culture, 20(1), 40-55. http://doi:10.1353/nin.2011.0033

Leeder, M. (2011). Collective screams: William castle and the gimmick film. The Journal of Popular Culture, 44(4), 773-795. http://doi:10.1111/j.1540-5931.2011.00862.x

Roose, J. (2018). It's a wonderful life (1946). Directed by Frank capra. Screenplay by Albert Hackett & Frances Goodrich. Adapted from the book the greatest gift, by Philip van Doren stern. Psychological Perspectives, 61(4), 553-557. http://doi:10.1080/00332925.2018.1536531

Van Riper, A. B. (2016). In the Heart of the Sea dir. by Ron Howard. Film & History: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 46(2), 96-98. http://doi:10.1353/flm.0.0086