Document Type : Original Research Paper
Authors
1
Assistant Professor, Department of Media Arts, Faculty of Religion and Media, IRIB University, Iran
2
Associate Professor of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
3
PhD Student, Philosophy of Art, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
This article delves into the philosophical capacities of the series Black Mirror as a narrative medium for engendering “film thought experiments”—experiments that engender ethical experiences not merely through abstract argumentation but via multilayered narratives, visual forms, and the audience's emotional engagement. The primary focus of the research is on episodes that forge ethical borderline situations: moments of existential turmoil, the collapse of meaning, and the imperative of ethical choice amid emergencies. Thus, drawing upon concepts from existential philosophy (Jaspers, Heidegger), contemporary virtue ethics (Nussbaum), and the phenomenology of the other (Levinas), the present essay endeavors to demonstrate that episodes such as “White Bear” (2013), “Be Right Back” (2013), “White Christmas” (2014), and “Nosedive” (2016) serve as exemplary instances of ethical encounters that not only represent ethical crises but also create “ethical experiences”: they immerse the viewer in the heart of ethical dilemmas, transforming them from a passive observer into an ethical agent who internally assays the cognitive and emotional tensions of these confrontations. Consequently, the viewer is provoked to contemplate the contours of ethical experience in borderline situations while simultaneously nurturing their ethical imagination and emotional sensitivity. Methodologically, this research advances through a philosophical-narrative analysis, emphasizing the interplay between ethical imagination, visual narratives, and affective-cognitive responses.
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