Shylin Ferrera
ENG 2001-O525
Word Count: 1124
The Ethical Decisions of Jaswinder âJazzâ Smith
In this essay, I will explain the ethical decisions made by Jaswinder Smith, better known as âJazzâ, in âSay Hello, Wave Goodbyeâ. Throughout the story, Jazz follows a certain code of ethics known as Virtue Ethics. Virtue Ethics is focused on the notion of the individual, answering the question of what type of person I should be? It takes on a more personal element as morals, virtues, and codes are applied on a situational basis rather than clear cut rules. When we compare this to Jazzâs job which is described as an immigration officer, It strongly differs from what ethics may be required at such a high-risk position. Being an Immigration officer inherently comes with a set of rules and guidelines, however, these calls do not always speak to how Jazz chooses to act and respond ethically. The story itself follows Jazz through a day in her life on the job, sectioned into three interactions with the people she puts into holding, essentially blocking their passage into the UK. The decision she makes and ethical choices regarding said decisions are what makes up the moral framework of her character. During this time we watch as Jazz follows the codes of her job and the codes of her life, applying her ethics to each individual situation.
Early on in the story Jazz meets a young teenage girl by the name of Megan. Upon meeting her, Jazz asks her a myriad of questions all while noting that âshe wouldn’t look [her] in the eye.â Megan’s nervousness and lack of understanding become increasingly evident throughout Jazz’s questions as she lists her reasons for entry as wanting to see candles at Madame Tussauds and try â-some of that world-famous British pizza.â As readers, we understand that These answers are both inconsistent and strange as Madame Tussauds does not house candles nor is Britain known for pizza. As the story progresses we later find out that Megan was planning on meeting a boy, specifically Prince Harry, yet, despite this, Jazz does not allow her entry. This directly contrasts with her actions at the beginning of the story when she allows a woman in a wedding dress to pass through. The woman exclaimed the improbable idea of a marriage between her and prince harry. Despite the ludicrous nature of this fictitious wedding, Jazz Still allowed her entry, however, this decision was not without questions as she states â- had the girl in the wedding dress ever been refused entry to the Uk? Did she have a return ticket? Did she have sufficient funds for what was planned to be a two week Stay?â And so on. These questions are similar to the ones she asks herself in regards to Megan. Yet in that case, she tells the girl no. She explains that â-I donât care if someone lies to themselves, – but I donât like it much when they lie to me.â The nature of the situation, when comparing Megan to the woman in the wedding dress is the same, yet Jazzâs decision rests on her morals. We, as the reader, can tell that Jazz values honesty and that she may have some personal concerns in regards to Means ‘situation’. The situation in question being a young girl traveling alone to a country she is unfamiliar with, along with no return ticket. With these factors in mind Jazz can arguably be acting on her Virtue ethics. If the rules were clear cut regardless of Circumstance, she would have treated both Megan and the woman in the wedding dress the same, however, we know this is not the case. She somewhat acts on her emotions in a sense, showing both concerns for Megan’s situation as well as disdain in being lied to. She also identifies the moral consequence of allowing an adult to enter the UK unsupervised versus an unsupervised teenager.
Similar actions can be seen when we look at her interaction with Donald Harrison, another man She stops from entering the UK. When she first meets Donald she remarks on how normal she looks and is made to believe heâs just a standard visitor, it isnât until he states his reason for travel that we learn of the man’s mental state. He claims that heâs there to seek political asylum due to Barack Obama planting a microchip in his brain. Even more improbable of a notion when compared t0 Megan, Jazz denies him entry. If it were just this, Jazz could clearly be stated as simply following the rules of her job, however, her interaction after that gives us readers access to her code of Ethics. In both her interactions with Donald, Jazz is never dismissive nor rude. Instead, jazz humors the man in conversation as well as âprotectsâ him right before his return trip. This protection comes in the form of withholding the truth. At the end of her shift, she sits with Donald explaining to him that his family had reported him missing and are waiting for him back home. The news comes as a shock to him as he questions the fact that he questions the idea of family. She continues to explain to him that they are going to put him on a plane back and that his family will be waiting on the other side. Here, Donald asks âBut what happened to me? – What the hell happened to meâ This alludes to some sort of unconfirmed mental issue. Whatever the case may be, it’s clear that Donald is completely unaware of his travels, of his claim of being micro-chipped, of almost anything leading up to this moment. When he proposed his question to Jazz in hopes of finding out what exactly has happened to him, she makes the conscious choice to not tell him stating, â[she] was on the verge of telling him about being refused and removed. Why it happened. What it meant. But she knew that wasnât really what he was asking about, so she just gave him a little smile, and she said nothing.â This decision also speaks towards virtue ethics, as the decision to do what can be perceived as caring and considerate; considerate of him, his mental state, and slightly of his family who may be struggling with Donald as well.
Jazzâs actions in âSay Hello, Wave Goodbyeâ are in clear alignment with virtue ethics. She is a woman that despite her high-security job with a strict set of rules to follow, does not only pass judgment based on said rules. She often follows her intuition and personal decisions as she navigates through the people she meets during her job. Her actions indicate that not only is she considerate of the circumstances but of the people themselves, doping what she deems right.
Work Cited:
ScanIan, S. (2020). A short introduction to five types of ethics. https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/profscanlan-english2001-fiction-f2020/files/2020/11/Five-types-of-Ethics-fall-2020.docx
Parsons. T (2011). Say Hello, Wave Goodbye. In Departures â Seven Stories from Heathrow. Harpercollins.
