Am I My Brother's Keeper?

The “White Bear” episode of Black Mirror is about a woman named Victoria who is being continuously tortured and used as a sideshow attraction for the murder of a child. The episode starts off with Victoria waking up confused and scared and searching for clues as to who she is when she finds a picture of a girl that she assumes is her daughter. She wanders out of the house to find people to inquire about her identity and location. When Victoria finds others, they do not help her and instead videotape her as she is being chased by a masked man with the “white bear” symbol. She meets a woman named Jem who helps her escape and they plan to destroy the radio signal controlling the people who record everything. When they get there and destroy some of the machines they are attacked by the controllers and they reveal that Victoria is part of an act. They reveal that Victoria, along with her now deceased fiancé, kidnapped and murdered the girl in the photo and she videotaped the girl burning alive. She is then paraded around the town like a circus animal with people shouting and throwing things at her. Victoria pleads for the organizers to just kill her, but instead they lock her in a room and painfully erase her memory so they could start the show all over again.

In the film, there were two things that stuck out to me. One was the theory regarding crime and punishment as it relates to reformed individuals. Victoria’s memory had to be erased multiple times for her punishment to ensue. One could argue that because her memory was erased that she is not the same person who participated in the killing of the child. However, if you abide by this theory then she should not have to endure the multiple punishments that are attributed to her in the film. She should only have to endure it once and then be absolved from the murder of the child. But at the same time one must think about the parents of the child. How do these multiple punishments affect them, having to relive the death of their daughter repeatedly? It is as if they are being punished as well as Victoria.

The other was how it is commonplace for inhumanity to be captured with a camera, both towards others and oneself. When there is a fight or argument that takes place, it is routine to see people film the altercation rather than stop it. It is a wonder if this practice were to still occur if the individuals filming were also charged with a crime for not assisting a fellow human in need. This same argument can be made for people who view suicides on Facebook Live. Should they be charged for not alerting authorities to intervene in a difficult moment in a person’s life. These are not easy questions to answer, however because these situations are even questions in the first place shows how society has degenerated and the need for change is prevalent.