When I first watched "White Bear," I was taken back. I couldn't believe what I saw, that no one was willing to help a woman who doesn't know who she is, what is going on and doesn't understand what has happened to almost everyone she sees. Once we are shown the twist, my perspective was changed three times from one of sympathy, to one that I felt Victoria was getting what she deserved, back to a lesser version of sympathy. If we, as humans, we're to live in a world where more severe crimes were treated as an eye for an eye, then I believe that we would live in a pretty awful world. In America, we only have one punishment, the death penalty, that even remotely mimics what "White Bear" has shown us. Even with this, what I also belive to be a lesser version of what was shown in White Bear, there is such controversy surrounding this particular topic.
If we were to ignore the fact that Victoria has her brains fried, by way of electric shock therapy that erases the brain's memories to a certain degree, I would feel like what Victoria received was just. However, when we take into account that this horrific event happened to Victoria daily, for at least three weeks minimum, and then, again daily, Vitoria has her memories erased, that what is occurring to Victoria is very unjust but it also brings to question the moral factor of "White Bear". Is it morally correct to do this process to Victoria, once, daily, or never? If doing it once is too little but daily is too much then what makes the right amount of times this process should be done to Victoria. Though, to Victoria this only happens once to her because her memories have been erased. It just so happens that this process is played out every single day for three weeks, though to her it is the first time every single time.
White Bear is a short film that displays a moral dilemma. We, as views, are shown a woman, named Victoria Skillane who wakes up to find she is surrounded by pills on the floor and scars or cuts on her wrist. Victoria then discovers a photo of a little girl named Jemima Sckints, whom Victoria suspects is her daughter. As she roams around the "town" she finds no one but quite people filming and taking photos of everything she does. Then Victoria is hunted down by a gunman. The gunman chases Victoria down to a gas station, all the while people are silently stand around filming. This is where views are introduced to two new characters, one of which "dies" off almost instantly. However, the other character helps, Jem, through the horrors implied that are soon to play out. In the end we are shown the crimes that Victoria has committed. The crimes include helping torture a young girl and standing by idly while filming said torture. We are then told that her fiance was the one who tortured, killed, and burned Jemima. The fiance committed suicide in jail while awaiting the hearing for the punishment of his crimes. However the public felt he got off too easily and that justice was avoided and in turn created a "white bear justice park" which is like an amusement park with a very sick twist.
3 comments:
I agree with you and believe that torturing Victoria was morally wrong. I think she should have been locked away from the rest of society for the horrible act that she committed. It is also very sickening that these people who participated in this had pleasure in torturing Victoria. It makes me think that these people are as morally corrupt as Victoria.
Personally, I think that Victoria's punishment was too severe. I feel that she didn't receive the proper punishment because she wasn't able to feel remorse for committing a heinous crime. It's like she experienced a never ending cycle and learned nothing. Plus, all her pain and suffering appears worse than the death penalty.
I answered that doing it even once or daily is morally wrong because the immediate action we take to make her feel destructive will make us the perpetrator. I think that the girl who helps Vic to escape has the most fault rather than the man who chases after her. Because she makes Vic believe that there is hope to escape, but in reality, she is a traitor. Her action makes me think of Julius Caesar when he died by his best friend's knife and stated, "et tu, Brute". Vic would say that to the girl who "rescued" her. Her actions seems to be the cruelest because it is unexpected for Vic to realize. Thus, the ending where hope is dissipated proves to humanity that justice is unclear and it can come back to attack us unexpectedly. It is sad for me to realize how the world operates and the true instinct of humanity.
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