Cider House Rules
Ashley Polston
ACP Comp P3
November 18, 2014
Justified or Not
In the film Cider House Rules, rule breaking and deceit are somewhat justifiable acts that the characters use out of selfishness. Homer Wells is an orphan that grew up in an orphanage in Maine in the 1940s. The orphanage was directed by a man named Dr. Wilbur Larch. As Wells grew, Larch took the initiative to take him under his wing and teach him to be an unlicensed, skilled doctor. One ordinary day, Candy Kendall and Wally Worthington arrive at the orphanage for an illegal abortion. Once the procedure is over and they are ready to leave, Wells spontaneously asks for a ride to “anywhere”. Wells’ curiosity of the world leads him to new experiences. He begins working at an apple orchard where he lives under the “Cider House Rules”. Worthington is shipped off for war and leaves his fiancé at home with Wells. The two begin a fling. Throughout the film Wells shows substantial growth as he is encounters many obstacles. At the end of the film, Wells returns back to the orphanage and takes over, Larch dies, and Candy and Wally remain together. One act of selfish deceit in the film was when Dr. Larch uses forgery to create a fake certificate for Homer as a doctor. He wants to portray Homer as a specimen to take over the orphanage because he knew the change was inevitable. The motive behind Larch’s deceit was to maintain the morale the orphanage withheld, whether it was or was not actually moral. He feared that the choice of the new doctor by the board would be someone who would do away with abortions. Other reasoning, along with the way the children would be treated, was also on Larch’s mind when being deceitful. These reasons were justified internally for Dr. Larch. Eric Fromm, a distinguished writer, psychoanalyst, philosopher, historian, and sociologist of the twentieth century, stated, “…obedience to another person is ipso facto submission needs also to be qualified by distinguishing “irrational” from
ACP Comp P3
November 18, 2014
Justified or Not
In the film Cider House Rules, rule breaking and deceit are somewhat justifiable acts that the characters use out of selfishness. Homer Wells is an orphan that grew up in an orphanage in Maine in the 1940s. The orphanage was directed by a man named Dr. Wilbur Larch. As Wells grew, Larch took the initiative to take him under his wing and teach him to be an unlicensed, skilled doctor. One ordinary day, Candy Kendall and Wally Worthington arrive at the orphanage for an illegal abortion. Once the procedure is over and they are ready to leave, Wells spontaneously asks for a ride to “anywhere”. Wells’ curiosity of the world leads him to new experiences. He begins working at an apple orchard where he lives under the “Cider House Rules”. Worthington is shipped off for war and leaves his fiancé at home with Wells. The two begin a fling. Throughout the film Wells shows substantial growth as he is encounters many obstacles. At the end of the film, Wells returns back to the orphanage and takes over, Larch dies, and Candy and Wally remain together. One act of selfish deceit in the film was when Dr. Larch uses forgery to create a fake certificate for Homer as a doctor. He wants to portray Homer as a specimen to take over the orphanage because he knew the change was inevitable. The motive behind Larch’s deceit was to maintain the morale the orphanage withheld, whether it was or was not actually moral. He feared that the choice of the new doctor by the board would be someone who would do away with abortions. Other reasoning, along with the way the children would be treated, was also on Larch’s mind when being deceitful. These reasons were justified internally for Dr. Larch. Eric Fromm, a distinguished writer, psychoanalyst, philosopher, historian, and sociologist of the twentieth century, stated, “…obedience to another person is ipso facto submission needs also to be qualified by distinguishing “irrational” from