The documentary "The Corporation," co-directed by Jennifer Abbott and Mark Achbar, is a polemic against corporate America or more specifically, against corporations. The film offers an inside look at the corporation in recent history, one that has been largely immoral from any philosophical perspective. Roy Anderson, CEO of Interface the largest rug manufacturer in the world, is shown telling other executives they are "plundering" the world in their drive for sustainable production (Achbar and Abbott, 2003). The film shows the lack of ethics and corporate social responsibility in modern America. This analysis will show how corporations influence society. A conclusion will address what social responsibilities corporations should have for workers, the environment and society in general.
Corporations rose in power during the twentieth century due to the industrial revolution and boom in manufacturing after WWII. The narrator of "The Corporation" maintains that 150 years ago the corporation was "relatively insignificant," but today its presence is "all-pervasive, like the Church, the Monarchy and the Communist Party" (Achbar and Abbott, 2003). The corporation is the dominant social institution in the U.S. and the global environment today. One bizarre ruling by the Supreme Court declared a corporation was a "person," with all rights due persons under the Constitution (Achbar and Abbott, 2003).
Corporations are good for society in that they create jobs for society, pay taxes for social programs and improvements, and provide needed goods and services to consumers. However, this film shows corporations are often harmful to workers, the environment, and society in general. From polluting milk with antibiotics fed to sick cows to corruption at companies like Enron that cost workers their pensions and decimated their stock holdings, corporations are often abuse workers, po
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