Take Home Test 1.Write at least 4 pages (1000-1200 words)
Due Tuesday October 17.If you have not finished the test by class time, DO NOT miss class.You can e-mail or fax your test to me later in the day.
Needless to say, any form of plagiarism or other academic dishonesty will be dealt with severely.
The following case is adapted from a write-up by Robert F. Ladenson, of Illinois Institute of Technology.
Elia Kazan, now 90 years old, was one of the most
important American film directors during the 1950’s and 1960’s, having
directed classic films such as On the Waterfront, A Streetcar Named
Desire, East of Eden, and Viva Zapata, which launched the careers
of Marlon Brando and James Dean. Mr Kazan was in 1998 turned down for lifetime
achievement awards by both the American Film Institute and the Los Angeles
Film Critics Association, but in 1999 was given a lifetime achievement
award by the Academy of Motion Pictures. In 1952 Mr. Kazan appeared before
the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC)
and informed on eight friends, all film writers and directors as having
been, like Mr. Kazan, members of the American Communist Party in the 1930’s.
Mr Kazan did not accuse the eight individuals of any specific actions injurious
to the United States. Nonetheless, none of them were able to work in the
film industry for many years, in some cases, ever again, as a result of
Mr. Kazan’s testimony. Mr Kazan’s testimony took place at the height of
the McCarthy era when the HUAC was zealously looking for evidence of Communist
influence in Hollywood. Mr. Kazan was under pressure to testify, as were
other former members of the American Communist Party in the film industry,
because failure to cooperate with the HUAC had led to many writers and
directors being blacklisted by film studios, which made it impossible to
find work. Movie critics are deeply divided over the decision not to honor
Mr. Kazan. Some believe that, in the words of one member of the American
Film Institute, “All that matters is the movies. You’re honoring a person’s
body of work.” Other critics disagree. “When you’re honoring someone’s
entire career, says another critic, you’re honoring the totality of what
he represents, and Kazan’s career, post 1952, was built on the ruin of
other person’s careers.”
Explain the ethical approaches of TWO philosophers from the following list, and discuss what their approach would suggest in deciding whether it is morally right to give Elia Kazan a lifetime achievement award.Be sure to refer carefully to their writings, quoting sentences or passages that are relevant (with page references).You do not need to do any further research into Kazan’s career or what has been written about this controversy.Simply use the information you have in the passage above.