Morality and Art in Sophie's Choice

Annie Groth

IB TOK bl. 5

Ms. Hunt

Does the movie Sophie’s Choice (1982) have a moral vision? Should art be moral?

            If a “moral” choice is defined as one that forces people to choose between what is neither wrong nor right, then how can we justify which option to pick? Such is the case in Sophie’s Choice, a movie which explores the theme of morality through the main character’s decision of which child she will spare in a concentration camp in Nazi Poland. Whether the film has a “moral vision” will be interpreted as if it explores morality, but not necessarily that it defines what is the best kind of morals to have. While Sophie’s decision can be primarily analyzed through the area of knowledge of ethics, history and art also play an important role in the film and so will be further explored.

While at first ethics may seem like the clear area to turn to in making a moral decision, there are so many different views of morality by philosophers that in the end they make it harder to decide. For example, John Stuart Mill, with his utilitarian view, would argue that it would not matter which child Sophie chose to save, as long as she decided against not making a decision and both would die instead of one. However, it can be argues that this first moral decision, of saving one child or none, is easy for Sophie because she wants one of her children alive. The movie shows then moral vision that, to some extent, doing what is moral is not doing what is fair.  Otherwise, Sophie would have chosen the option of equal treatment for her kids and let both die. Sophie decides then to turn to logic and bases herself on the assumption of which child would actually survive, because sending one to the children’s concentration camp would not necessarily mean they would not end up dying there anyways. She chooses the boy, who is older and so has more chances of survival, and morality was defined using circumstance and logic for Sophie.

History and art are also used to portray the writer’s and director’s moral vision. Given the context of the story—Nazi Poland—there are moral implications that are historically acknowledged that what the Nazi’s did was gruesome, inhumane, and unethical. Had it not been for this historical setting, Sophie might have never been forced to make a decision. History can then play an important role in morality because it can provide the decision with context. Though perhaps the author could have used any situation which violated human rights, it is hard to compare one to what it was like in an Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp because of the choices it forced people to make. Sophie’s Choice author, William Styron, and later the movie’s director, Alan J. Pakula, were using history as an artistic choice. Using flashbacks, they chose to set the story both in present-time 1979 in the United States and past-time 1940 Poland. The contrast between the two time frames shows how Sophie’s decision had long-lasting effects on her as she later committed suicide, even though she was only forced to make a decision because of the historical context she was placed in. Artistically, this was done through images of both settings, and also choosing to portray the more positive ones (in the U.S) first then the negative ones (in Poland) to further shock the viewers. The initial artistic image of Sophie was more relatable to viewers, a healthy, romantic and enthusiastic girl living in New York. Her past history though makes viewers surprised and uncomfortable, with Sophie being shown as skeletal, hair-less, and desperate. These artistic choices, which used History, enhanced the movie’s moral vision, portraying the context of Sophie’s ethical decision.

Though it is clear Sophie’s Choice has a moral vision, a different question arises of whether art should be moral. In this case, the movie shows how art can be moral but to generalize that all art should also be more is, in my opinion, not appropriate. Determining art should have a moral element would limit art, such that many things would not be produced. For example, my classmate Alejandro Torres showed us a painting he made of hanging organs and explained they represented his identity. His piece did not have a moral vision, rather, it was an abstract interpretation of himself. He did not have any need or use in having to morally justify himself to others and if he did, that would have changed the meaning of his work. However, the moral element to Sophie’s Choice is vital in the movie, otherwise without it the plot would also be completely different. Just as a moral choice depends on various things such as ethics and history, so should art depend on each individual’s use of knowledge.