The Pursuit of Meth (Final Midterm Blog 3)

Walt's work leaves him uninspired and even somewhat depressed; he has family member who don’t understand him and even belittle him; even his car breaks down at the worst possible moment! Diagnosed with cancer, he faces the prospect of insurmountable financial debt, which only adds to his economic misery, hounded as he is by creditors from very early on in the first season. This last fact about walt’s situation becomes crucial not only to understanding the popularity of the series we all know someone who in recent years has fallen under crushing financial debt but also the greater message behind Breaking Bad and the choices of Walter white, a thoroughly modern and thoroughly average man.

Of course, it’s how Walt copes with his cancer diagnosis and what he chooses to do to deal with the financial burdens of his life that generate the pathos of the series, not to mention the growing interest in his plight. After all, it’s not every day that a high-school chemistry teacher decides to break bad and transform himself into a meth cook and dealer. But we mustn’t forget that Walt is doing things that are just plain wrong, as well as downright vicious, and that’s also part of the show’s appeal.

We all know it’s not right to cook and sell meth, but why? There are a variety of moral theories out there that give us reasons why actions are moral or immoral. Probably the most popular moral theory by virtue of its apparent simplicity of application is deontology. Following in the footsteps of Immanuel Kant, deontologists hold that there are absolute right and wrong ways of thinking and behaving in the world, and that it’s our duty as rational creatures to think and behave the right way. The most fundamental principle for deontologists is  universalizability: you’re supposed to act in such a way that you could will that everyone would act in the same way in the same circumstances.

A very different kind of moral theory is utilitarianism, made famous by John Mill. Utilitarianism focusses our attention solely on consequences of actions for the majority of people affected by a decision. If an action’s outcome is going to benefit the majority in some way, then the action is chosen path of producing quality meth to create financial stability for his family seems wrong on the face of it, no doubt. However, from the utilitarian perspective, it could be argued that cooking and selling meth is an expedient means to securing his family’s financial future after he’s dead. A greater number of people are going to be happier if he cooks and sells meth than if he doesn’t.

Even if it can be argued from the deontological or utilitarian perspective that what he’s doing is right or good, from the virtue ethics perspective Walt is clearly vicious. He’s a man whose moral compass is inappropriately aligned. In fact it’s outrageous for anyone to think that he’s to be praised for entering a world of violent drug lords and dealers. Why?

Because Walt places his family directly in harm’s way. He’s not a noble man looking out for te best interests of his family; he willingly, deliberately continues to put the lives of his innocent family members in jepardy, under the false premise of saving his family the financial hardship that will occur for them after he has died. Walt’s judgment has been warped by years of poor decisions and the compounding consequences that attach to them. He claims to be focused on the financial situation at hand, instead of focusing, for instance, on his family in the way that a loving and caring man would od. He misses the birth of his daughter because he has to complete a lucrative drug deal. At the end of the second season we learn what Skyler thinks of Walter’s constant evasions, lies, and inexplicable absences: she leaves him.

Braking Bad is chock full of characters who are less than what society deems “perfect” or “good.” Skyler, a devoted wife and mother of two, instigates an illicit affair with her boss, Ted Beneke, and later buys a car wash to launder money for Walt’s meth business. Marie, a picture-perfect wife and nurse by trade, is a closet kleptomaniac and steals a pricey diamond tiara for Walt and Skyler’s baby. Gus, a seemingly model citizen and owner of Los Pollos Hermanos, is a ruthless killer and a major player in the meth trade. Even Hank, an upstanding DEA agent, has his issues, including an affinity for illegal Cuban cigars!

Mill actually sees value in the “alternative” lifestyles of these characters because they represent what he calls individuality. For Mill, individuality or the pursuit of individual and independent decision making is key to human progress and is directly related to the pursuit of truth and the perfection of humankind. The potential for the progress of humankind resides in every individual’s unique thoughts and actions. And in order to encourage free thought and action, Mill argues that “there should be different experiments of living. “ Breaking Bad’s characters but rather that “free scope should be given to varieties of character, short of injury to others.”

Despite risking jail time, losing his family, or even getting killed, Walt makes what he believes is the best decision for his family. Walt essentially tries out a new “plan of life” that may contain some nuggets of “truth,” despite its illegality and despite society’s disapproval of it. The result of Walt’s new life plan , or of any alternative life plan, may be totally wrong, but because it challenges the status quo it can potentially help humankind’s progress toward a more just and free society.

In this way, Breaking Bad explores the limits of liberty: At what point can a just society say what you or I choose to do is not permitted or illegal? Mill is always quick to remind us that even society’s most widely accepted views may be wrong as often as they are right. And, even if society's views are right, if they aren’t questioned then they run the risk of losing the force of truth. According to Mill, the majority and those in charge tend to not think highly of individuality. But, alternative lifestyles that are practiced by a minority of the population, such as those seen in Breaking Bad, can contain truths or partial truths, and should therefor be protected if we as a society are dedicated to liberty and the pursuit of truth and perfection.