"White Bear"

The episode, “White Bear,” was a scenario that left me utterly speechless after watching it. The twist at the ending was incredibly mind- blowing, however, it was one that posed a significant question of morality. Did the crime fit the punishment and is that form of punishment ethical? My answer to this is that the way in which they went about the punishment is 100% unethical. The fact that they created an entire park dedicated to selling “fun” to the public, allowing them to profit from the torturing of a human being (even though her crime in itself was not humane) is horrible. I believe that allowing the criminal to undergo her victim’s death once is enough but to essentially continue the process until she dies is completely wrong. I feel that the people are placing a lot of their anger on her that was supposed to go towards her fiancé, but since he killed himself they did not feel as if justice was completely served. In my opinion, I believe that if you eliminate the people who are not involved in the case, then the situation would not have developed to the level that it had, and the “justice” that they concerned themselves with would have been appropriate. When you think of the family of the little girl, I am concerned about their thoughts on the fact that a private owner, whose name is more than likely kept from them, is profiting from their daughter’s death. It’s sickening.

There were a number of instances in the episode that was relatable to today’s society. One particular instance is the silent filming of people who are in need of help. I see it all the time on Facebook among the teens in high school. They would record a school fight and post it online. Not only is it further embarrassing for the victim in the recording, but it shows the people who did not help them and that is essentially the woman’s crime in “White Bear.” Another relatable instance was the fact that private owners are profiting off of criminals. This is exactly the way that they prison system in the United States works. In my opinion, that is the most disturbing aspect. When there is a private owner involved, the only thing that they would concern themselves with is money; therefore, they do not care about the treatment of the criminals, but with obtaining more criminals in order to profit from them. Which could ultimately influence the laws and pose the question of whether those laws in themselves are ethical.