Introduction
Education should be a right not a privilege. Woody Allen’s film provides a perfect platform for the discussion of the immoral and ethical. In this motion picture, he seems to support the defeat of the religious as seen through the death of the most religious person in the story – Ben. In order to make a comprehensive discussion, one must incorporate the views of philosophers such as Kierkegaard ad Nietzsche.
Whether faith should play a role in what it means to live an ethical life
The events in ‘Crimes and Misdemeanors’ occur at a time when the state of morality in society has declined. Some acts can be permitted by law, but are not necessarily acceptable in religious circles (Crimes and Misdemeanors). In a place where God is not that significant, then certain unthinkable actions, such as murder, are tolerable.
In this case, faith had been suspended from the lives of those involved and one would argue that the main character – Judah – had also discarded morality. Nonetheless in order to know for sure whether ethics was not relevant in Judah’s decisions, then some insights from Friedrich Nietzsche would be in order.
Nietzsche believes that morality can either be understood from the point of view of the slave or a master. The master often preaches morality, especially Christianity to the masses as a means of controlling them. He believes that people who act in accordance to religious moral structures are weak and powerless. Religion causes people to continuously regret or feel guilty over their actions.
However, the master views the world in a totally different light. It is devoid of any moral laws and man can, therefore, curve his own path or define his own identity. The master is some sort of superman because Nietzsche believes that religion is a man-made creation. The master must now create his own set of laws or ethics that will govern his life.
In the film, one would argue that Judah was the ‘superman’. He chose to abandon the religious values that his father taught him, and instead created his own set of rules. Although it was difficult for Judah to get over the guilt that haunted him after his mistress’ death, he finally transcended it. He was able to come to his ‘true nature’ by overcoming the weakness of religion.
Nietzsche would say that Judah was strong enough to get over his guilt-ridden religious structure and find peace with his actions. The philosopher would also argue that Judah created his own set of ethics and thus triumphed in the end. It is only those who stick to their true sense of will who are the most justified (Kaufmann 122).
On the flipside, another philosopher –Soren Kierkegaard asserts that man must pass through three phases of life before reaching the highest consciousness. In the aesthetic phase, one is only concerned about one’s desires. Issues such as beauty, comfort and food are all that one thinks about. However, one can move from this stage to the ethical one, in which other people’s concerns become significant.
Nonetheless, the individual is still the main focus in the phase. Lastly, one may opt to move onto the religious phase, where one’s commitment to God takes center stage. One’s dedication to one’s religious teachings takes precedence over all else; hence the mention of Abraham who was willing to suspend ethical believes for his faith.
To Kierkegaard, faith gives purpose and meaning to the other two stages of life, so it should never be suspended for the other. In Woody Allen’s movie, Judah abandons his religious beliefs for his familial responsibilities, and thus rationalizes his actions.
Kierkegaard would state that Judah retrogressed by going back to stage two. He chose not to obey God unconditionally, and thus ruined his chances of eternal happiness. This philosopher would assert that Judah never got to the highest level of consciousness (Kierkegaard 81).
While Nietzsche’s views assist individuals in finding satisfaction in life; these recommendations do not necessarily mean that humans will act ethically. When God is eliminated from the world, then no right or wrong answer exists.
All human beings then come up with their own ethical laws, which reflect the path that they have chosen for themselves. In a world such as this, there would be no mechanism to decide which one of the many ethical laws is more rational or appropriate over the other. This brings out the importance of faith and God in the field of ethics.
Conclusion
From the above reflections, it is clear that faith plays an indispensable role in ethics. Kierkegaard argued that one’s soul was not one’s own but the Lord’s. This is what true happiness is about. Although it may seem that Judah triumphed in the film, one still questions the ideal picture portrayed of Judah and his wife.
Even his mistress, Dolores, observed that he came to life when he was with her and seemed lifeless when he was with his wife. In fact, one should question whether Judah was really happy after eliminating Dolores. In a world devoid of religious laws, individuals are left to choose their own rules. They will rationalize their deeds irrespective of how unethical they are.
Judah believed that he was doing the right thing by murdering the neurotic and indiscriminate Dolores. Human beings have a great capacity to rationalize the most extreme actions. Even Hitler thought that massacring a whole race was the greatest service he was offering to mankind.
Nietzsche’s views endorse moral relativism and this leave a lot room for unethical acts. Faith and religion should be incorporated into ethics because they provide a moral compass for assessing the goodness of others’ actions.
Works Cited
Crimes and Misdemeanors. Ex. Prod. Woody Allen film. NY: Metro Goldwyn Meyer. 1989. DVD.
Kaufmann, Walter. On the Genealogy of morals, NY: Vintage books, 1974. Print.
Kierkegaard, Soren. Fear and trembling, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1983. Print.