Business and Professional Ethics Term Paper

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business and professional ethics in the movie "Wall Street." Discussed are the ethical principles that are violated as related to business; how greed is presented as part of American business; Gecko's view; how Buddy reacts and deals with the issues of ethics; how Buddy's view of greed and ethics evolves and changes throughout the film; what is/are the ethical dilemmas he faces and how does he handle them.

Wall Street, the Movie

Capitalism is said to be the path to the American dream. The barons of the early twentieth century built empires, the majority of which remain major players in the corporate world today. The goal of a capitalist is to make the best product for maximum profit and at the same time sell it at a competitive price to give the consumer the best buy, thus, acing out market competitors. The force behind this is basically self-interest. The American dream of the barons was one of the future, to create and build businesses that would not only dominate their perspective markets of the day, but businesses that would continue to grow, providing wealth and security for future generations. However, this Adam Smith view of capitalism took a turn in the deregulated financial climate of the 1980's when junk bond trading was at its peak. Then the capitalist motto seemed to become the epitome of the 'me' generation, to hell with anyone else, profits at all cost. Gordon Gekko, the financial wheeler-dealer giant in Oliver Stone's 1987 movie "Wall Street," summed it up brilliantly when he said, "Greed is good" (Stone 1987). Gekko represented the mood of the times, when financial hustlers made fortunes ruthlessly buying and selling company stocks, controlling markets, often by unscrupulous means. It gave a whole new meaning to capitalist force of self-interest.

Bud Fox, the naive American dream seeker, whom Gekko takes under his wing, goes through a moral transformation during his short, but active encounter with the Wall Street giant.

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He enters as an eager beaver, ready to prove himself, and more than ready to rise in the corporate world of finance. For this is his way to dream achievement, to the finer things in life, to a permanent refuge from ever-threatening poverty. So eager is he, that when he finally meets Gekko, he crosses the threshold of morality and business ethics by tipping Gekko to inside information, betraying his father's trust and confidentiality. Small as it seemed, that moment baited him for a roller coaster ride that would take him to the heights of success and then drop him to the bottom of ruin. However, all that mattered to him at that moment was that it got him in the good graces of Gekko and his feet in the door of a world he'd been knocking on for years, a door with the gold nameplate titled 'power and money.'

Lured into the lair by Gekko's enthusiasm and 'take no prisoners' attitude, Bud is seduced by success, where money buys power and power buys the magical kingdom of one's creation, the elite of the elite. He wants a kingdom of his own, and Gekko is his ticket. When Gekko approaches him to spy on a financial peer, Bud counters, but.."I could lose my license. If the SEC found out, I could go to jail. It's inside information, isn't it" (Stone 1987)? Gekko reminds him of the inside tip Bud had given him about the airline company his father works for and explains that it is information he wants from Bud, nothing else. Unless Bud is willing to go the distance to get it for him, then Gekko has no use for him. Bud hesitates, but not for long. He reasons that this is justified, a means to an end, the end being information to gain the edge. So seduced is he that….....

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