How does communication ethics play out in the film?
Communications ethics is a
very important aspect of this film. There are lots of examples of communication
ethics but the two examples that stand out to me is when Valjean steals the
candlesticks and when Valjean steps in when Javert is arresting Fantine.
When Valjean gets released
from prison he gets caught for stealing silver and is returned to the church
where the bishop lies and says he gave the silver to Valjean. This is a very
good example of how your standing in society affects how much people believe
and listen to you. Even though both men lied about the silver, the policemen
only believe Valjean after the bishop confirms it. If Valjean had not been a
convicted criminal, he might have had better luck with the police officers
believing him in the first place.
Thanks for your insightful notice of how status and cultural/societal power it wields can shape communication ethics. My blog post primarily focused on the effect of objective in defining how we treat others, but after reading your post, I'm reminded that "objective" and "status" often go hand-in-hand. After all, Javert's objective of peace-keeping and emotional distancing from the criminals of society wouldn't exist without the power he has, both literally (in his ability to arrest, detain, and issue warrants) and figuratively (in his wealth and the cultural weight of his opinions).
ReplyDeleteAs you point, Valjean wields a certain amount of social status to vouch for Fantine and protect her on the streets. In that moment, his objective--to redeem himself for past crimes in his previous life--is especially evident. In this way, I think many of the movie's characters use their social status / power as a conduit for enacting and fulfilling their objectives, with "communication ethics" as the end result of each speaker-listener relationship that calls upon this application.