The Reluctant Fundamentalist
write a reflection paper on choosing one of two films to write about. These papers must properly reference a minimum of two texts from the fall or winter syllabus in a bibliography and link themes and content from the film to course themes or terms from the weekly glossary definitions. The purpose of this assignment is not to review the film for the plot character development, etc., but to use course readings and concepts from the course to interpret the significance of the film in terms of issues relevant to the study of business and society.
Students can choose to write their reflection papers on:
The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2012), Doha Film Institute, https://ocul-yor.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01OCUL_YOR/mc13rm/alma99103637746960516
he accepts a job offer from Underwood Samson to work in their valuation department in New York City, where he succeeds and quickly rises through the ranks. However, after 9/11 changes occur both professionally and personally for Changez as his loyalty to country and family are tested when America’s war on terror hits close to home.
The film raises several themes that resonate with course readings from this semester such as power dynamics between stakeholders, ethical decision making under pressure, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and globalization among others. In terms of power dynamics between stakeholders discussed by Joe Badaracco in “Managing With Power: Politics & Influence in Organizations” (2010), Changez experiences first-hand how big corporations can use their power over its employees for unethical means when he is tasked with evaluating competition companies for takeovers that would result in hundreds being laid off without proper compensation or severance packages simply for monetary gain which goes against CSR principles discussed by Edward Freeman et al., 2018). Furthermore Changez encounters cultural tension due to globalization which has been explored extensively throughout this semester by authors such Christopher Breward who wrote “Globalization: An Introductory Guide”(2020). These tensions come into play most prominently during Change Zimmerman meeting where they discuss what it means to be an American versus someone from another culture or nationality while also demonstrating how deeply embedded biases can influence people's decisions even if they aren't aware of them.
Overall The Reluctant Fundamentalist serves well to tie together many concepts learned throughout this course while also providing an interesting story line that directly relates these concepts back to our lives today which makes it worth watching regardless of one's background or interest level in business and society topics..