The Fallacy of Choice: Society’s Justification for the Condemned

The blurb in this issue’s call for submissions describes life as “a series of choices.” We make daily decisions about what to eat, do, and say. However, for many, this is not the case. People often point to the obvious examples of imprisonment and enslavement as appalling examples of the lack of choice but then dismiss them as justified or in the past, respectively. Because of this, we have this false sense of justice in modern society that we all deserve our fate, assuming that we bring it upon ourselves through our choices: the fallacy of choice. So while many believe that our fate is determined by our choices, in many cases, our choices can have little to nothing to do with our destiny.

One of the greatest examples of this can be found in the Second World War. In Nazi Germany, many Germans were conscripted into Hitler’s military at ages as young as 14, given no option but to fight (Ray, 2024). While the German military had fanatical Nazi units such as the Waffen-SS that were made up of true Nazi believers, a large portion of the German army had no choice but to fight. By examining the private correspondence of German prisoners of war from WWII, London School of Economics history professor Sönke Neitzel found that many German troops had little to no interest in Hitler’s Nazi ambitions of world domination, nor did they care for National Socialism. Instead, he found that their violent actions were motivated by their duty to their unit and comrades in battle (Neitzel, 2001). To be clear, many of these conscripts took part in some of the most awful acts in human history, including the extermination of millions of Jews and the execution of thousands of prisoners of war. However, after the war, Germans that were indoctrinated and conscripted into the German war machine were unfairly lumped in with Nazi fanatics and volunteers (Neitzel, 2001). In doing so, the public assumed that they were all given a choice at some point when they hadn’t, exemplifying the fallacy of choice.  The unfair treatment of Germans who were forced to fight in the military reflects how society often assumes that our choices completely dictate our actions. By lumping these conscripted Germans in with the rest of the German army that decided to go to war, our perspective on history simply neglects the nuances of their lack of freedom that led to their involvement.

This trend of using the presumed choice individuals have been given in the past to rationalize judgment in the present goes beyond extreme examples in history. It plays a large role in modern society. For instance, we often blame and think less of individuals for their unhealthy eating habits, assuming their circumstances are completely their fault and dismissing whatever socioeconomic position they might be in. While fitness gurus will preach messages of putting down the donuts and picking up the weights, many Americans simply don’t have the financial resources to lead a healthy lifestyle, exemplified by the development of food deserts across the United States. Food deserts are regions where residents have limited access to healthful and affordable food, typically due to low incomes or the need to travel further to find healthier food options (Johnson, 2024). Some of the most egregious examples of this can be found in the lower-income neighborhoods of Detroit. In these areas, decrepit homes line the streets, framed by overgrown sidewalks, characterizing the years of neglect these neighborhoods have faced. The destruction of the city’s industrial economy and crack epidemics of the '80s and '90s drove White Flight on a large scale, leaving these neighborhoods occupied by largely low-income African-American families (Walker, 2022). Because of this population shift, quality grocery stores and schools rapidly closed down. Today, residents either have to commute to wealthy neighborhoods to buy healthy food at an exorbitant price or settle for the unhealthy fast food options in their neighborhoods. Most settle for the latter, unable to afford the former (Walker, 2022).

But worse than the obesity that ravages low-income neighborhoods is the wave of drugs that have lined the streets of major American cities. As a kid, I would visit my mom’s family in California every summer. Walking along the famous Embarcadero with my family, the homeless lined the streets, begging for any spare change or leftover food. My parents always ignored them. When I’d ask them why we couldn’t help them when they needed support, they would always tell me not to feel bad for the drug-addicted homeless as they got into that situation through their own choices. I believed this for years until I found out that one of my closest friends in the U.S. was dealing with a Methamphetamine addiction. When I first found out, I was furious. How could someone I cared about so much do something so horrible to themselves? Throughout various conversations with him, he kept telling me that he wanted to stop but couldn’t; he sounded like he had no choice but to keep using. Curious as to what could be happening to him, I researched the nature of drug addiction. My suspicion was confirmed. According to Tom Hill, ​​senior policy advisor at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, addiction alters the brain and controls its victim’s behavior (2019). Its victims are driven to involuntarily feed their addiction by any means possible, despite most wanting to stop. Nonetheless, society looks down on addicts. Looking for an explanation for addicts' unusual behavior, society has historically accused them of holding weak character and moral failing (Hill, 2019).

Throughout society, the undesirable situations that many find themselves in are often rationalized on the principle that they made poor decisions that led to that fate, disregarding the underlying factors that may have taken that luxury of choice away from them. That being said, it’d be ignorant to pretend that everyone’s fate is already determined, regardless of our choices. Therefore, the truth must lie somewhere in the middle of these generalizations.

In the 2012 cartoon movie adaptation of Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax, the Lorax warns the Onceler of the possible ramifications of his deforestation practices and construction of his new factory. He cautions the Onceler that “a tree falls the way it leans. So be careful the way you lean.” (Paul and Daurio, 2012). Despite being a seemingly insignificant line from a kid’s movie, we could learn something from this piece of Lorax’s wisdom. Perhaps people fall the way they lean without ever deciding to fall. In the movie and book, the Onceler decided to chop down all the trees for profit, bringing about a sad fate for the environment and himself. However, the decision was based on his desire to appease his family, unaware of what repercussions he would face.  Yes, homeless drug addicts made a poor decision at one point or another to try a highly addictive substance, but that doesn’t mean that everyone who makes that mistake at a young age should be sentenced to a life of despair. Their lives may have begun to lean in the direction of addiction and poverty as the result of a few bad choices at a young age, but that doesn’t warrant a lifetime of neglect and isolation. Too often, we jump to sweeping assumptions of others, and this issue’s call for submission perpetuates one of the many misunderstandings that reinforce these assumptions. The sooner we accept this fallacy of choice, the sooner we can begin to understand each other better. After all, “a tree falls the way it leans,” and leaning toward judgment and prejudice will bring about the fall of all of us.

Bibliography

Hill, Tom. Is Addiction a Choice? Mental Health First Aid from National Council for Mental Wellbeing, March 25, 2019. https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/external/2019/03/is-addiction-a-choice/. 

Johnson, Marie Lorraine. Food Deserts: Definition, Effects, and Solutions. Medical News Today, March 8, 2024. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/what-are-food-deserts. 

Neitszel, Sönke. Understanding World War II through the eyes of German soldiers. London School of Economics and Political Science, 2016. https://www.lse.ac.uk/Research/research-impact-case-studies/understanding-world-war-two-through-eyes-german-soldiers. 

Paul, Cinco and Ken Daurio. Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax. Illumination Mac Guff, March 2, 2012. https://assets.scriptslug.com/live/pdf/scripts/the-lorax-2012.pdf. 

Ray, Michael. Wehrmacht: Armed Forces of the Third Reich. Encyclopedia Britannica, October 30, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Wehrmacht.

Walker, Cryss. The Evolution of a Food Desert: How a Detroit Neighborhood Lost Its Stores. CBS News, September 19, 2022. https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/the-evolution-of-a-food-desert/.