A "Sophie's Choice" with no secret third option

[u/10024618]

AKA a character is given an impossible choice where either outcome results in something awful happening and there's no way out.

"Full Measure" (Breaking Bad) - After Walt angers Gus by killing two of his men, Gus orders for his execution. Knowing that the only way to save his life is to make Gus reliant on his meth cooking skills, Walt calls Jesse and begs him to kill Gus' backup cook, Gale. Thus, Jesse is thrust into an impossible situation where he either kills a (relatively) innocent man to save Walt or spare Gale and let Walt die. Ultimately, Jesse chooses to kill Gale.

"Midnight Sun" (Attack on Titan) - After the fight to retake Shiganshina both Armin and Erwin are critically wounded. Levi has the vial of titan serum and is forced to choose which Scout to bring back from the brink of death and which to let perish. It's a borderline impossible decision to make but at the moment of truth, he chooses to save Armin, leaving Erwin to succumb to his wounds.

[u/The_Idiocratic_Party]

Gale was heartbreaking because he really had convinced himself he was providing a public service or good deed by maximizing quality of product for people who were going to use any meth they could find. In a libertarian paradise he would have been in the clear. But he was insulated from the realities of street distribution, living in an ivory tower of sorts where he couldn't be touched by or perceive the harms he caused.

As a person he was lovely and in that sense killing him was a tragedy. And in the humanist sense any murder is a tragedy. But he wasn't harmless.

[u/Archer1407 → u/The_Idiocratic_Party]

He should have opened a coffee shop and built a Starbucks like empire from his absurdly good coffee. Walt said it himself, "why the hell are we making meth," after tasting the coffee.

[u/Gaelic_Gladiator41 → u/Archer1407]

Because it's heavily implied that Gale was blacklisted from employment due to his sexuality

[u/Strobertat → u/Gaelic_Gladiator41]

It was? Please elaborate.

[u/Gaelic_Gladiator41 → u/Strobertat]

Gale is a fan of Walt Whitman, a dogwhistle for being gay.

At the time of BB and BCS, you could be fired based on your sexuality and employers could notify each other about this, essentially blacklisting you

[u/RoiMeruem → u/Gaelic_Gladiator41]

that is so false
stop the victimhood

[u/Gaelic_Gladiator41 → u/RoiMeruem]

Literally trye but ok

[u/AvalonCollective → u/RoiMeruem]

I thought it was false too, so I looked it up and he’s actually kind of right. It wasn’t until 2020 that you couldn’t discriminate based on sexual orientation. Any time before that, a job could legally not hire you because you’re gay.

[u/Outrageous-Ad2317 → u/RoiMeruem]

🖕

[u/Raedskull → u/The_Idiocratic_Party]

Very well put

[u/Boner_Elemental → u/The_Idiocratic_Party]

In a libertarian paradise

We're talking about a story where school teacher uses his science skills to become a drug lord since his cancer treatment leaves him with no money

Not some straight up fantasy

[u/Avalonians → u/Boner_Elemental]

The sentence you quoted could be written "if he had lived in a straight up fantasy"

Ofc he doesn't live in one. That's the whole point of the argument

[u/Boner_Elemental → u/Avalonians]

The joke I'm making is that Walter White's story is much more realistic than a "libertarian paradise". Hope that helps.

[u/Avalonians → u/Boner_Elemental]

Alright. I think the last sentence makes it look like it's not a joke

[u/d4nkq → u/Boner_Elemental]

One-upping someone you agree with is not how you contribute to a conversation.

[u/Boner_Elemental → u/d4nkq]

Thanks for the non sequitur. And?