Deontological Ethics

Deontology is based on the fact whether the morality of the action is based on the righteousness
of it under a fixed set of rules rather than the consequences of it. It is also known as obligation-
based ethics. The obligation may rise from an external or an internal source. There are various
formulations of this ethics in which Kantianism is one of the theories. Jordan Belfort’s actions
have completely gone against this ethical theory.

Kantianism, formulated by Immanuel Kant states that people’s action should be consistent and
sensible and people should help others make those ration decisions while respecting their needs
and differences given that these actions are motivated by good will. Kant stated that only a
absolutely good thing is a good will. So, the only judge for a morally right action is the will.
Jordan Belfort’s actions at Stratton Oakmont have had far reaching implications with regards
to this theory.

People trusted Stratton Oaks and invested their money as suggested by the brokers of the
company. Jordan Belfort has used this trust put in him to his own personal needs. Instead of
looking out for the investors and guide them through the process of financial growth, he let
them invest in those stocks which he knew would crash after a while. With the huge
investments from the investors, the stock price would eventually bloat up and Jordan would
use this as a window to withdraw his share of stocks which were large in number to gain huge
profits and thereby leaving people who trusted him cheated and their stocks worthless after a
point of time.

By his actions he not only made irrational decisions which suited his needs and supported his
lifestyle but also made his employees perform the same. His main motto was to earn money in
whichever way possible even if it required him to perform illegal activities and be
untrustworthy to his clients. He made sure that his employees were on the same page by
constantly training them.

“There is no nobility in Poverty” -Jordan Belfort

Jordan Belfort could have helped many people who trusted him which included his clients,
investors and his 1000+ employees but he chose not to. Instead, he looked for his own interest
and his actions were found unethical.
Contemporary deontologists have made a clear distinction between deontic and epistemic
authority. An epistemic authority can be best defined as the relationship between a student and
a teacher wherein students have no obligation to obey the teacher. Deontic theory can be best
described by the relationship of employee and an employer where an employee must obey the
employer regardless of the information’s appropriateness. Jordan Belfort’s actions are very
much relatable to the contemporary deontic theory because his employees were forced to
switch their motives and oblige to Belfort in his wrongdoings.

Jordan Belfort was an aspiring individual who wanted to establish himself as one of the best in
the business and earn enormous amounts of money. He underwent training with stalwarts of
the business but in 1987 as a 24-year-old, he was jobless and was not able to meet his daily
needs, so he had to take up a job at a small firm which traded penny stocks. He knew the firm
was not completely fair to its customers which included teachers, small wage workers but, in
order to meet his needs, he had work there. This point can be traced as the beginning of his
unethical action. What stated as a compulsion soon went to a downward spiral from which he
couldn’t escape. In the following years, he went to earn millions of dollars but his actions
remained unethical.