Despite never being able to remember movies, after reading Jim Shepard’s Saving Private Ryan And The Politics Of Deception I was able to recall the important scenes he was discussing and reflect on the rhetorical analysis that was given. Shepard gave many examples of political rhetoric and why we believe it, but in particular he made movies responsible for America’s unquestioning trust of the government. A particular scene in Saving Private Ryan Captain Miller tells the soldiers, “that they all have duties as soldiers that supersede their concerns for their own safety.”  I believed that paralleled Full Metal Jacket and is what Shepard called, “one of the oldest traditions in war movies”, the ethical debate of soldiers.

As I continued reading I had to agree that this was a stereotypical American scene, and although I have never noticed it before, I could list plenty of movies that follow this same formula. In Full Metal Jacket this “lull in action” happened when the soldiers were getting filmed and interviewed about their thoughts on the war.  Kubrick makes sure to include a diverse group of soldiers in the interview with a large range of answers to the question. However, the common thread is that they are all there for a reason, regardless of their opinions and objections American patriotism is paramount and what justifies everything else

The peace-sign pin Joker wears exemplifies this ethical dispute. It completely contradicts his uniform, and his “born to kill” helmet. Shepard would explain that the scene when Joker is reprimanded about his pin it opens up the ethical issue his ethical views as a person versus his alliance to his country. I believe that this conflict then foreshadows the true test of Joker’s ethics, which is decision whether or not to shoot the sniper.