Dascalu Andrei

12E

Is Jeffrey culpable for the state of affairs presented in the story?

(The 400 Pound CEO By George Saunders)

The topic in hand is not an easy one to discuss, given that the short story illustrates the
somewhat miserable life of and individual named Jeffrey, which concludes with him going to prison for
murdering his boss. While his actions are unexplainable for a rational human being, we cannot but
help to somewhat empathize with Jeffrey.

Jeffrey, as described in the story, was an overweight man, with little to no self esteem. His
whole life revolved around his job and his unhealthy obsession with Frieda. The highlight of this short
story is the moment when Jeffrey ends up suffocating his boss, Tim, which is described as a
despicable and horrible human being, by hugging him to death, while trying to save an animal rights
girl from Tim. Although his action is not justified, seemingly being something much more personal (“Do
I then release him? To my shame, no. So much sick rage is stored up in me.”), it makes us wonder
how any other human being in his situation would react. It is safe to say that nobody has the right to
say what is right and wrong in this situation, as ethics simply could not explain the years upon years of
trauma and self destruction Jeffrey has gone through, and while murdering somebody is rightfully
punished by a sentence to prison, this certain situation demands much more than common-sense in
order to understand. Even in his final moments as a free man, Jeffrey is somewhat understood by the
judge (“He says he empathizes completely and says he had a weight problem himself when a lad.”).
This being said, I certainly believe that while the 50 year sentence was necessary, as other horrible
things could have happened due to his unstable mental state and impulsive behaviour.

Another aspect worth pointing out is Jeffrey’s state and whether all of his problems could have
been avoided. It becomes clear that many of Jeffrey’s problems stem from his weight, and that the
constant bullying from others, along with his issues with Frieda have put a mark on his self
confidence. However, obesity is something that people can change through dieting, exercising and
other means of losing weight. While it is uncertain whether the death of Tim would have been any
different had it not been for Jeffrey’s mental state being so low and ravaged by the constant anxiety of
being criticised of his weight, I still believe that Jeffrey is accountable for his actions, and that he could
have prevented himself from becoming the person he despised by losing weight and learning to
respect his own self. Perhaps all the things that have occurred in the short story are the result of
Jeffrey’s lack of interest towards changing himself, and his overall inability of becoming a better
person. This being said, I believe that he is responsible for what happened, and in the end, despite
Tim being a horrible person, other means of solving issues were available, which Jeffrey unfortunately
did not have in mind, thus deciding his own fate.

In order to conclude everything that has been mentioned above, I believe that although Jeffrey
definitely had his reasons to act in the way he did, and we are somehow expected to empathize with
him, the act of murdering another human being is punishable by prison, and under no circumstance
should any person resort to this kind of behaviour. It is safe to say that Jeffrey picked out his own
destiny, and that he is culpable for the state of affairs that developed over the course of the story. In
the end, despite there being many other options, Jeffrey chose the worst one, acting impulsively and
thus ruining his entire life in the process.