Morality, Freedom and Public Opinion

974 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The art of persuasion

The protagonists in the films Kinsey by Bill Condon and Thank You for Smoking by Jason Reitman are two men who are cut from very different styles of cloth. In Kinsey, the titular character uses logical discourse and gathered statistics in an attempt to remove the shackles of moral prudery from the subject of human sexuality for the betterment of humanity. On the other hand, the central character in Thank You for Smoking is a lobbyist for the tobacco industry who uses logical fallacy and rhetoric to obscure the health risks of tobacco use because he is extraordinarily good at it, and additionally he gets paid handsomely. As divergent as these two men are in their intentions, they both show passionate skill in asserting their claims against tough opposition. Moreover, both characters argumentative styles reveal their mutual apprehension of the power that morality and rhetoric hold in shaping public opinion. To be sure, Alfred Kinsey and Nick Naylor are different men with dissimilar intentions, however, they both possess, albeit for differing reasons, a driving passion to work at achieving their ambitions. In an early scene from the film Kinsey, we glimpse some of the grounds for Professor Kinsey’s passion. We see a young Kinsey witnessing one of his tyrannical father’s sermons on the evils of lust. His father exaggerates the connection between commonplace items and sexual deviancy, even going so far as to condemn the zipper as it provides, “ speedy access to moral oblivion” (Kinsey). Alfred Kinsey wants to make the sexual world a less shameful place for people. On the contrary, the foundations for Nick Naylor’s ardor are not so noble or complex, as he unapologetically tells us in the first 10 minutes of the movie. Naylor works to s... ... middle of paper ... ...and bureaucracy, I cheered at their victories and was saddened at their setbacks despite their personalities or choices in career. I believe rooting for the underdog is part of my American cultural inheritance. There is something delicious in watching a person struggle against the opposition to change the minds and hearts of the masses, even if I don't believe in their cause. I think that we as a culture love it because while watching characters like Alfred Kinsey and Nick Naylor, we are reminded that with passion, skill and a thorough knowledge of what we am up against we can change the world, or at least talk it into to agreeing with us. Works Cited Kinsey. Dir. Bill Condon. Perf. Liam Neeson and Laura Linney. Fox Searchlight, 2004. Online. Thank you for Smoking. Dir. Jason Reitman. Perf. Aaron Eckhart and Maria Bello Room 9 Entertainment, 2006. Online

Show More
Related

  • Alfred Kinsey Film

    763 Words  | 2 Pages

    Alfred Kinsey remains the most renowned scientists in the field of sexology. His studies yield important information that helped shape the idea of sex and continues to educate all in the most private aspect of our lives. The Kinsey film is a great depiction of his life, research, and impact on the perspectives of sex as we know it.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Article I'd Rather Kiss Than Smoke

    938 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the 1990 article "I’d Rather Kiss than Smoke" in the National Review, Florence King tries to persuade her readers to look through a smoker’s eyes in a smokist world. King has been around people smoking even before she was born. Her mother started smoking when she was twelve and she started this habit when she was twenty-six. Since she started smoking, she has been analyzing how non-smokers discriminate against them. Florence King expects everyone to be okay with smoking because it is what she was brought up in and it was okay in her family.

    Read More

  • Dr. Haviland’s A Silence That Kills and Florence King’s I’d Rather Smoke than Kiss

    1058 Words  | 3 Pages

    “I’d Rather Smoke than Kiss.” is Florence King’s very astute retort to anti-smokers. In this writing she advocates for smoking as a simple enjoyable thing to do. To emphasize this she recalls her first smoking experience, which is for the most part very normal and unexciting. However, this inconsequential account is not indicative of the rest of the story. King quickly switches gears as she goes on the attack. In the first section she labels hatred of smokers as a form of misanthropy which she goes on to say is “the most popular form of closet misanthropy in America today” (King 32). This perspective is further augmented by the fact that she considers second-hand smoke an invention; a means for the “Passive Americans” (King 32), to justify prejudice towards smokers.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Peter Brimelow's Thank You for Smoking?

    1244 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Thank You for Smoking. ?” The genre of argument. Boston: Thompson/Heinle. P. 141-143 Kovac, Rachel. A. Study Shows Ignorance of Smoking Hazards.

    Read More

  • John The Savage Character Analysis

    653 Words  | 2 Pages

    Aldous Huxley’s, “Brave New World,” explores the roles of people in society, morals concerning sexual activity, and other controversies in our reality. One of the principal characters in the novel is ‘John the Savage.’ John is a unique character in the story because unlike the other characters in the book, his emotions and morals were similar to those of the majority of our society. He felt emotions in a way others did not, and his morals can be regarded as ethically right (for example, he did not consider sex to be meaningless; in fact, he considered it an intimate act. Unfortunately, by the end of the story, John develops into a corrupt and barbaric man- the novel even finishes with the image of John whipping both himself and others, eliminating our prior perception of John’s character. This paper will analyse the themes and importance of the final moments of “Brave New World,” and explore how a person’s sexual experience is heavily experienced by their environment.

    Read More

  • A Contrast of Moral and Natural Liberty

    569 Words  | 2 Pages

    Winthrop stood tall among his peers and the community as he was acquitted. Upon his acquittal he felt is necessary to explain to the community how he was justified in what he had done. More specifically, how he was justified in exiling two residents of Hingham. Winthrop chose to speak of liberty. He speaks of not one, but two liberties; natural and moral. These two liberties contrast in both origin and in guidance.

    Read More

  • Alfred Kinsey FBI File Analysis

    1710 Words  | 4 Pages

    Donna J. Drucker, “A Most Interesting Chapter in the History of Science: Intellectual Responses to Alfred Kinsey’s Sexual Behavior in the Human Male”, History of the Human Sciences 25 no. 75 (2012): 79.

    Read More

  • Morality In Brave New World

    837 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mustapha Mond is the most powerful character in Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Mond keeps scientific and historic documents from reaching the people. Mond believes that science, religion, and art threaten Brave New World if let out, but religion would be bane of Brave New World.

    Read More

  • When Morality Opposes Justice: Human Nature

    1325 Words  | 3 Pages

    Morality ivolves distinguishing which human behaviors are right or wrong and good or bad. Morality covers topics such as harm, rights and justice, and therefore it is mainly concerned with protecting every idividual. There has been a culture of war between liberals and conservatives all based upon human morality aspects (Haidt & Graham, 2007, p. 1). Cultural war can be termed as the division in personal opinions and thoughts between open-minded people or liberals and the conventional or traditionalists, also known as conservatives.

    Read More

  • Smoking Bans

    1478 Words  | 3 Pages

    Smoking tobacco has long been an accepted form of recreational drug use despite a history of flip-flops of public opinion. The negative effects of smoking were not thought of or even known until the early 1900’s. (“Introduction to Smoking”) Over the last few decades there has been an ever increasing surge in the United States and all over the world to ban smoking in public places. The goals of these smoking bans are to prevent the numerous diseases and health complications that are produced from exposure to the toxic smoke and to improve the overall health of society. Some disagree with these motives by claiming that smoking bans have not actually saved any lives or prevented people from taking up the habit. Contrarily, global research now actually shows that smoking tobacco kills people both directly and indirectly; indirectly, of course, referring to second-hand smoke. Another argument against these smoking bans is that a number of people feel as though they infringe upon their individual rights. These people believe they have a right to smoke tobacco anywhere they choose; not unlike many people who also believe they have a right to avoid forced exposure to deadly second-hand smoke. One might wonder which of the two takes precedence. Another very important thing to consider is while these smoking bans may appear to have a good intent they present to society a difficult scenario if imposed and maintained; they threaten to set a precedent for the restriction of other freedoms that humanity may take for granted. Smoking bans may be justifiable but, like many other prominent moral dilemmas, it may take centuries if not millennia to satisfactorily answer the questions brought forth by the issue.

    Read More

  • Liberalism And Freedom

    2856 Words  | 6 Pages

    one may ask whether or not the ideas and goals of classical liberalism have been

    Read More

  • Liberty, Necessity, and Virtue

    1421 Words  | 3 Pages

    To understand the politics we have, we must look at two philosophers who have shaped the ideas and politics of this world. Niccolò Machiavelli and Thomas Hobbes founded a new kind of political science that opposed the classical view of politics. Both of these men believed classical philosophy and Christianity focused on reaching imagined republics; these imagines republics were unreachable. Under these imagined republics men were held to high standards, men had to be virtuous; and men could not keep all the virtues because they lived in a world where men were not all good. Machiavelli’s book The Prince redefines virtue in order to allow rulers to keep their power; he lowered the standards of politics with this action. While Machiavelli’s writings meant to influence rulers, Hobbes’ book the Leviathan focused on appealing to the people. Hobbes placed political philosophy on a scientific basis; as a result human life was reduced to only self-preservation and commodious living. This essay will examine the innovations Machiavelli and Hobbes created especially with their views on virtue, necessity, and liberty.

    Read More

  • Perversion

    2702 Words  | 6 Pages

    The issues of sexual ethics in relation to morality and perversion have been addressed in depth by each of the gentleman at this table. Sexual activity as described by Solomon and Nagle is comprised of a moral standard and ‘naturalness’ aspect. So, in claiming an act is perverted we must first examine it through a moral framework and understand how this interacts with the ‘naturalness’ of a particular act. Solomon makes the distinction as follows “Perversion is an insidious concept…To describe an activity as perverse is not yet a full blown moral condemnation, for it need not entail that one ought not to indulge in such activities.” Along with the examination of the nature of an act, there must be clear justification as to why sexual acts deserve special separate ethical principles. The question arises: does an act simply due to its sexual nature deserve a separate form of moral inquisition than other acts that occur in nature? In this essay I shall argue that perversion and immorality are not mutually exclusive. By this I mean that a sexual act that is, by my definition, immoral must also be perverted. It is also my contention that if an act is perverted we must also define it as immoral. This second part of the argument is contrary to what many of you have claimed. At the outset of this paper I would also like to state my support of Thomas Nagel’s argument holding that the connection between sex and reproduction has no bearing on sexual perversion. (Nagel 105)

    Read More

  • Religious Freedom

    686 Words  | 2 Pages

    Religion is doctrine centered on belief and worship of a higher being. The First Amendment guarantee of Religious Freedom means all people have the right to choose any religion they desire; similarly all people have the right choose no religion at all. Each person is guaranteed this right without resistance or opposition from the government. The Amendment assures that the citizens will enjoy freedom from religion – that is, freedom from imposition by the government of any certain religious beliefs or practices. Likewise, the Amendment also guarantees that citizens will enjoy freedom of religion – the ability of each individual citizen to choose a religion based solely on their own beliefs.

    Read More

  • Cybersex

    1892 Words  | 4 Pages

    Sex is generally defined the medical definition involving the sex organs, and participation by more than one party, but as humans are complicated beings this is insufficient to provide an account of sex. In Thomas Nagel’s essay “Sexual Perversion” he addresses the psychological account of sexuality with a phenomenological approach. Nagel describes a scenario of Romeo being aroused by Juliet, and Juliet being aroused by Romeo, and Romeo being aroused by Juliet’s arousal, and so on and so forth (Nagel 37). This progression of sexual arousal between two parties is the basis for which Nagel understands of sex. This progression eventuates in physical contact wherein the other becomes more and more “possesible” by physical contact, and the progression of arousal (Nagel 39). This progression of arousal in two parties, and the embodiment by physical contact is how Nagel describes sex. This definition provides Nagel with a basis for describing sexual perversion as anything that lacks the progression of arousal between two or more conscious individuals eventuating in physical contact that emb...

    Read More

More about Morality, Freedom and Public Opinion

Open Document