Ethical Dilemma OverviewOverall, we see several key ethical dilemmas in the movie. An ethical dilemma is defined in the Pollock text (pg. 15) as a situation where making a decision is difficult due to the correct course of action being unclear, or the correct course of action carrying negative consequence(s).. Some of the main ethical dilemmas in The Shawshank Redemption include; Andy having to decide whether or not to ACTUALLY (not just as he was wrongly accused) kill his wife and her lover or drive away from the house, Andy having to decide whether or not to help Mr. Norton with the financial books on his "Inside Out" program, Tommy deciding whether or not to tell Andy about his knowledge of Andy's innocence, and Red deciding whether or not to break his parole in order to keep his promise made to Andy regarding meeting up with him in Zihuatanejo, Mexico. To see a more specific breakdown of how certain ethical systems would view and act in each of these ethical dilemmas, click on the "Ethical Formalism", "Utilitarianism", and "Egoism" tabs.
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