A Few Good Men

This leads Kaffee to defend his clients on the basis on which they simply followed orders from a higher ranking officer, Colonel Jessup (Reiner). According to Milgram’s experiments, even normal, harmless people are able to inflict pain on another individual. The military is based on a chain of command, the Colonel at the top, Privates at the bottom, and everyone else in between. Milgram argues that, when in problematic circumstances, people are proud of doing a good job for their authority (Milgram 221). In other words, they want to obey the orders given in order to please the person holding authority. Could this explain why Dawson and Downey executed the “Code Red”? This is precisely similar to the argument Kelman and Hamilton present in their article “The My Lai Massacre: A Military Crime of Obedience”. According to these authors, “American military law assumes that the subordinate is inclined to follow orders…” (Kelman, Hamilton 270). The soldiers in My Lai, although possibly interpreting the orders differently than intended, ultimately did what their commanding officer ordered. The Marines in the film may have also been under the impression that they would not be responsible for any harm which Santiago may endure. Again, Milgram could attest to this argument. He states, “The essence of obedience is that a person comes to view himself as the instrument for carrying out another person’s wishes, and he therefore no longer regards

The purpose of this counselled essay is to explain my understanding and importance of following orders. This essay will have several sections to explain different areas where following orders effects. . I will cover the significance of following orders within the unit, prominence of following order within the artillery world, results of failure to follow orders, and how following orders will help me in the future. The importance of these procedures created by my superiors are apparent in a soldier’s daily life.

A few good men starring Jack Nicholson Tom Cruise and Demi Moore is about ethic in the marines. Many characters in the movie are faced with moral dillemas Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholsons characters are faced with moral dillemas. The movie is about two marines who are accused of murdering there fellow officer, during the incestigation it is discovered that there is a practice called “code red” this is a unethical and unofficial disciplinary measure by the marine squad when a member goes against the unit. The offender is gagged, beaten, and then they are killed by their fellow officers. The accused put the blame on someone they said was higher up from them. They carried out the “code red” order because the officer was not living up to the

He conducted 18 different variations of the original experiment. When changing different variables the obedience percentage dropped significantly. These variations showed that when the “authority” figure was wearing some sort of uniform the obedience levels would rise but when the participants question their authority they percentage decreased. In other variations the learner and the teacher were placed in the same room so the teacher can experience the pain the learner was going through. In this variation the obedience fell too. Throughout all of the variations the percentage of participants administering the maximum 450 volts decreased significantly when different variables were added to the

“You don't need a patch on your arm to have honor.” Lt. Daniel Kaffee, portrayed by Tom Cruise, says at the end of the movie to Lance Cpl. Dawson after the final ruling is read, stating PFC. Downy and Lance Cpl. Dawson are innocent but are dishonorably discharged from the military. A Few Good Men portrays the negative impact on military personally from strict obedience. Lt. Daniel Kaffee, along with Lt. Cdr. JoAnne Galloway and Lt. Sam Weinberg; played by Demi Moore and Kevin Pollack, must defend PFC. Downy and Lance Cpl. Dawson from being charge of committing a Code Red. However, Lt. Kaffee believes that PFC. Downy and Lance Cpl. Dawson committed the ‘Code Red’, but because it was a direct order

Everyday, people are forced to face with vicious circle of decisions: whether to stick to their morals or obey the authority figure. But it’s a fact that people have a propensity to obey authority, more than to preserve their own morals. A Few Good Men is a film that illustrates the struggle every marine faces-- to follow orders, good or bad. But why would marines follow the orders without hesitation if that order questions the principles they live by? Because the orders in the navy are meant to follow all for the reason of making everyone in Navy into good marines and to be strong enough to defend the nation. It required unquestioning commitment and obedience to orders. The articles, “The Perils of Obedience” by Stanley Milgram and “The

The purpose of Stanley Milgram writing his “The Perils of Obedience,” is to show to what extent an individual would contradict his/her moral convictions because of the orders of an authority figure (Milgram 78). He constructed an experiment wherein an experimenter instructs a naïve subject to inflict a series of shocks of increasing voltage on a protesting actor. Contrary to Milgram’s expectations, about sixty percent of the subjects administered the highest voltage shock. (Milgram 80). According to Milgram, experiment variations disproved the theory that the subjects were sadists. (Milgram 85). Milgram states that although the subjects are against their actions, they desire to please the experimenter, and they often

Lt. Daniel Kaffee uses his Harvard law education to represent two Marines who are being charged for murder in the movie A Few Good Men. Lt. Cdr. JoAnne Galloway

Harold Dawson and Pfc. Louden Downey follow the order of Lt. Jonathon Kendrick from Col. Jessup to perform a Code Red on Pfc. William Santiago. Kelman and Hamilton note that "in an authority situation, individuals characteristically feel obligated to obey the orders of authorities, whether or not they correspond with their personal preferences" (Kelman &Hamilton 139). Humans are more likely to follow the orders of a superior or one who appears to be a superior ("When Good People do Bad Things). Rod Powers would develop that by stating in his article "Military Orders" that "military discipline and effectiveness is built on the foundation of obedience to orders" as well as courts have held military members accountable for their actions even while following orders (Powers). Szegedy- Maszak writes that psychologist Herbert Kelman explains that one of the three traits that contribute to one harming another is authorization (Szegedy- Maszak). If this information is true then Col. Jessup would act however he pleased due to the fact that he was the highest ranking official at the Guantanamo Bay Base in Cuba; he had no one to follow or hold him accountable to the ethics of a marine. As an authority figure, no one questioned his authority; Jessup knew that they could not question his order to perform a Code Red. For instance how Rajeev Purohit explains in "Alternatives to Obeying Superior Orders; A Question for the International Superior Court" "the defense of superior orders is impermissible (Purohit). As well as in Milgram's experiment the professor in the room seated behind the teacher giving the prods to continue with the experiment, the superior or the one trusted was the one the teacher relied on (Milgram 79). As one might conclude, humans seem to pick on the weak in life; however, this fear can be taken to an extreme and may be the beginning of dehumanization as well as other harmful

As US military expert Rod Powers explains how those who are military members who fail to obey their superiors risk serious consequences in "Military Orders", and could relate to why Dawson and Downey were convicted for their crimes (Power). Required to follow orders, a soldier does not need to obey an unlawful order, but those who obey can be pinned with criminal prosecution and in this case, it matches with Dawson and Downey's situation where they taped and tied up Santiago (Power). Fromm can conclude that irrational authority is used by using a comparison between a slave and their master; the superior wants the best they can draw from their subordinate and tries to exploit them, leading them to control with force (Fromm 126). When it comes to deciding whether or not an order is ethical, it is also the soldier's call to believe the legitimacy of the order; according to Saul McLeod, who is a psychologist and the author of "Obedience to Authority," obedience is a form of social influence by responding to a direct order from another individual (McLeod). Although Col. Jessup urged for no one to touch Santiago, Kendricks directly ordered Dawson and Downey to treat him with a Code Red, going against Col. Jessup's orders. Numerous situations occur where two people will discuss the same topic, but would contradict each other. It is easy to say "I was only following orders" to justify one's self to explain their reasoning, but that statement, also known as the Nuremberg Defense, is not going to save a person every time. Yes, Dawson and Downey were only following orders, but did they ever take a moment to question whether it was the right action and for a sensible reason? Probably not in consideration that it is a routine to follow a command because if they deny their superior's order, many consequences will follow. Kelman and Hamilton logically claimed that

When Jessup initially stated that no one was to touch Santiago, Markinson was to relay the message to the fellow Marines. One of the most valued questions declared by Kaffee to Jessup was, “If Lieutenant Kendrick gave an order that Santiago wasn't to be touched, then why did he have to be transferred? Colonel? Kendrick ordered the Code Red, didn't he? Because that's what you told Lieutenant Kendrick to do!” (A Few Good Men). Kaffe then exposed that after Santiago died, Jessup had Markinson sign an invalid transfer order and Jessup then altered the flight log book (A Few Good Men). After continued discussion about who to blame for Santiago's death, Jessup confessed to ordering the code red (A Few Good Men). Correspondingly, Stanley Milgram found that within the experiments, the blame of the shocks being given was disoriented. Milgram's findings show that individuals blame each other for something that goes awry, which in the film, the Marines, Dawson, and Downey took the blame from their authority figures. Comparatively, Fromm stated, “As long as I am obedient to the power ... , I feel safe and protected. In fact, it makes little difference what power it is that I am obedient to” (Fromm 127). Thus being the reason why Dawson and Downey obeyed Jessup’s “code red” order and why teachers in the Milgram experiment continued on, even when the circumstance

On the flip side, I think it is interesting to see how the experimenter could control people without using fear. During the experiment, many subjects wanted to discontinue the experiment. Despite all the opposition, they still obeyed the experimenter’s orders. That makes me wonder: what caused them to continue the experiment? Since there was no harm being done to teachers, they did not fear for themselves.

A Few Good Men is a 1992 American drama film directed by Rob Reiner and starring Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, and Demi Moore. It was adapted for the screen by Aaron Sorkin from his play of the same name. A courtroom drama, the film revolves around the court martial of two U.S. Marinescharged with the murder of a fellow Marine and the tribulations of their lawyer as he prepares a case to defend his clients.

could do his job to the best of his ability. The question is where his actions unethical? According to the law yes. Code REDs are illegal according to the military law. Was it a wrong choice? It is hard to tell. Jessup is an honorable and respected Colonel, and he might know a thing or two about protecting a country. If his methods were successful, then his arrest will inevitably lead to what he predicted as a “weakened nation.” Utilitarians could argue that the price paid to “train” marines with Code REDs, could be outweighed by the benefits of a safe population and country. He wasn’t worried if the action was just or not, but he was concerned more about the result of having a safe country. That is why he gave the order for the Code RED.

Fans of writer-director Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Iron Man 3) are in luck. A master of the Partners-That-Hate-Each-Other movie, the first trailer for his upcoming release, The Nice Guys, looks to be everything Shane Black fans look for in his movies. Set in Los Angeles circa 1977 and starring Russell Crowe as some sort of mob heavy and Ryan Gosling as a ne'er-do-well in a noirish tale involving the search for missing girl.