Juno, 2007
May, 2023 | AMANDA ARMANIOUS
The movie Juno is about a young girl named Juno who had gotten pregnant at 16 years old by a fellow male at her high school. Juno instantly decides she wants an abortion to take care of the situation. Yet, when she goes to the abortion clinic, she leaves. There is a girl from Juno’s high school, Suchen, standing with a sign outside the abortion clinic saying, “Babies want to be born.” Juno leaves the clinic and then decides not to have the abortion, but to try adoption. This leads her to tell her parents of her situation and they visit a family who struggles to conceive a child and are willing to adopt. Throughout the duration of Juno’s pregnancy, Juno keeps the family updated with doctors' appointments, the growth of the baby, and even dropped off ultrasound pictures to the couple. Juno’s ultrasound tech heard about the adoption plan and replied, “Thank goodness for that.” Following this comment, Juno’s mother and the tech had an altercation. This comment just shows the response from society towards Juno. It is unwelcoming and made to inflict embarrassment. Aside from this, Juno forms a closer relationship with the husband of this couple. Juno then realizes that something is wrong with the couple emotionally and the husband tells Juno on her latest visit to the house that he’s planning to leave his wife and move out. The husband ends up catching feelings for Juno and his wife divorces him.
Juno now feels conflicted as to whether or not she should give the baby to a single mother, to grow up without a father figure. But Juno does know how badly the wife wanted a baby. Juno knew the wife’s intentions were to love and care for a child, not to harm a baby. Juno makes the decision to still give the baby to the wife for adoption.
It is difficult to think of how a philosopher will view this; morally right or wrong and which aspect of it? Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher active in the 18th century, created an ethical theory known as Kantian ethics. According to Kant, moral standards are based on reason, and ethical behavior is decided by the nature of the action itself rather than by results or consequences. Kantian ethics supports the idea that a moral action respects the individuality and reason of all parties concerned and can be implemented universally without causing contradictions.
In the movie Juno, there are situations where everyone cannot universally agree whether is it right or wrong. The first situation is when Juno decided to get an abortion to begin with. Some may argue abortion is wrong because it is taking away a life and because it can feel pain, which is what Suchen was saying in front of the clinic. But others may say, a mother should have her own choice into whether or not she is ready financially or even emotionally to have a baby. Since this cannot be approved by everyone, Kantian ethics would prove this to be wrong.
Another situation is when Juno decides to give the baby to the wife, even though she is no longer in a stable relationship. Some may argue that this would be wrong because the child would grow up without a father figure and without the ideal home. They would further say that this would cause the child to grow up unstable, without the two incomes from both parents, and an upbringing with a lot of difficult questions from the child. Some may say that this was a good action from Juno and it would give someone something they've always wanted. They would include that if the mother is sincere about her decision in loving and caring for the child, then there will not be a problem. Since there are contradicting opinions on this matter and it cannot be universally decided, Kantian ethics would prove this to be wrong as well.
Another ethical theory is Carol Gilligan’s care ethics. Care ethics implies that the fundamental aspects of interactions and dependencies in human life have moral relevance. In other words, if there is an issue, an individual will approach the relationship aspect first before other factors. It is a normative ethical theory that holds that moral action and centers it on interpersonal relationships and care or benevolence as a virtue.
In the movie Juno, we can see many aspects of care ethics. One example of care ethics in Juno is when she first told her parents about getting pregnant. Her parents could have yelled at her or disciplined her in some way. Their response was not only supportive but also known that they were not happy or in any way okay with the situation. However, they decided to support her and her mothers initial response was to get her prenatal vitamins and bring her to a doctor. This shows care ethics because even though the parents were approached with this difficult situation, they took into account how Juno must feel in this situation and made her feel comfortable.
Another example of care ethics is when Juno goes into labor and Bleeker, the father of the child, decided to leave his track game to meet Juno in the hospital. Bleeker had known that Juno was going into labor because Juno did not show up to his track game. Juno and Bleeker had problems beforehand and she was also giving away his baby to the now divorced wife. Care ethics takes part in this because Bleeker put everything aside to be there for Juno during a vulnerable moment.
Overall, the film portrays various moral theories, such as care ethics and Kantian ethics, that have sparked ethical debates in regard to Juno. In the movie, complicated themes including teen pregnancies, adoption, and personal autonomy are discussed; yet, these concerns can be construed in several ways based on one's ethical system. While some critics have commended Juno for its depiction of the characters' honesty and moral issues, others have condemned the movie for glamorizing teenage pregnancies and setting unrealistic standards for adoption. But Juno offers a perceptive and nuanced discussion of difficult ethical dilemmas that can make viewers consider their own morals and convictions.