Ethics in Doctorow’s “Assimilation” (Tahirjon’s response)

For the introduction of my final essay, I intended to address why utilitarian ethics were a recurring trait among Borislav and Leon. These characters relationships with the protagonist, Ramon would be acknowledged in order to emphasize the relevance to the plot. I would mention how the arranged marriage between Jelena and Ramon was orchestrated to benefit other characters and how the couple could be perceived as “chess pieces” at the hands of Borislav. For the thesis statement, I would mention that Leon and Borislav are utilitarian ethicists and that their motives differ from what would be perceived at face value. I would discuss how embodied globalization played a role in the ethical overlap for Borislav since he intended to facilitate Alexander’s immigration to the United States.

Paragraph#1:

• Borislav introduced and relationship with protagonists indicated.
• Borislav’s role in the arranged marriage.
• Utilitarian tendencies indicated with examples such as manipulating the legal system in order to not only benefit Jelena, but her boyrfriend.
• Emphasize how Ramon’s virtue ethics have conflicted with Borislav since Ramon’s future was jeopardized by the covert strategy to accuse him of domestic violence.
• Mention how Borislav’s utilitarianism might coincide with deontology ethics due to the marriage requirements for U.S. citizenship, but how Borislav was preparing Ramon for fraud with not only the domestic abuse claim, but by his denial of funds to Ramon in order to “draw him in” to his plan.

Paragraph#2

• Introduce Leon as Ramon’s brother with a different lifestyle (materialistic).
• Describe Leon’s criminal past and acknowledge of how covert activities could be obscured in the eyes of a virtue ethicist such as Ramon.
• Acknowledge how Leon’s warning of Borislav’s plan is utilitarian because himself and Ramon would be clear from authorities’ suspicion.
• Mention how Leon’s lavish lifestyle is utilitarian because his social group benefits in addition Rammon and Jelena when they were invited to the party.

Paragraph#3

• Describe how Leon and Borislav are both utilitarian ethicists because of how they have pursued/achieved goals that involved actions that oppose deontological concepts such as laws.
• Mention how Leon’s personality is utilitarian because he is comfortable with getting what he wants and his wealth could be partly attributed to how he “sold himself” in United States indicating that he did not retain parts of identity that would interfere with his success unlike Ramon.
• Compare Leon’s success with that of Borislav who is a business-owner and is also comfortable with risk and influencing others.
• Indicate how Leon and Borislav are both associated with a pragmatic lifestyle and how they were able to succeed without necessarily abiding to laws entirely.
• Indicate how Leon and Borislav had both implemented strategies to protect/benefit another family member rather than solely prioritizing themselves.

Paragraph#4:

• Acknowledge how Borislav and Leon are not staunch utilitarian ethicists.
• Justify claim with how Borislav’s business operates with a license so law abidance was in fact influential to his success.
• Further justify claim by mentioning how Leon was analyzing Ramon’s situation in direct accordance with the laws such as the Federal domestic violence law.
• Include how Leon could also be perceived as a deontological ethicist because he had expressed concern for Ramon and had even suggested how he could “flee” Borislav’s plot.

Paragraph#5

• Conclude with emphasis on how Leon’s and Borislav’s utilitarian ethics influenced how Ramon and Jelena perceived each other.
• Indicate that Borislav and Leon have both assisted other characters aside from themselves.
• Mention how Borislav’s plan had partly failed since he would have been unable to utilize Jelena’s marital status for Alexander’s citizenship, but Ramon and Jelena were in fact married.
• Mention how Leon’s goal of protecting his brother had indirectly benefited Jelena since she would be liberated from Borislav’s trap. – Tahirjon (Vince) Rajabi