Laila Sauer--Erin Brockovich

1. I believe that Erin's aggressive pursuit of a job definitely stemmed from the fact that she is a single mother. She is constantly talking about her children, and complaining about how she, for example, wants to be able to afford an exterminator to make their lives more enjoyable. Erin's sense of "right" and "wrong" in the workplace differs from societal standards. She wears flashy, revealing clothes and swears like a sailor. She expects that she can just walk into an office and get a job. I think this attitude stems partly from desperation to provide for herself and her children financially and partly because she just doesn't know what is custom. She is an unconventional law firm employee because she didn't go to college, and hasn't been exposed to the "office" day-to-day way of life. Some might say that Erin is pushy. I think that word has a negative connotation. I prefer the word determined to describe her. She is determined to get a job, and do it well. She begins to genuinely care about her work and the community she could save. Sure, she comes across as pushy, but it is because she really really cares about her family and eventually her job.

2. At the beginning of the film I did not like Ed Masry. He just let the other lawyer walk all over his case. He almost seemed like he wasn't even on Erin's side, even though he should have been. This is probably due to the fact that Erin doesn't come from money. There wasn't much reward for him to win the case, so he didn't try. I firmly believe that attorney's should give the same attention to every client regardless of the revenue the client represents. It is simply their job. The point of our justice system is that it is just. Justice is not served when lawyers fail to represent every client equally.

3. Merriam Webster defines the term work ethic as "a belief in work as a moral good." Erin infidelity has work ethic. She went out of her way to follow her instincts. She sensed something wrong when she saw the real estate file and she acted on it. She sacrificed her own time with her children, which mean the world to her, to serve the greater good of the affected community. However, she does not accept Ed's authority. She is headstrong, when she believes something is wrong she will say it. At one point, she accused Ed of not wanting to put in extra work on the water poising case and being lazy. She merely calls it like it is, sometimes she is actually right, but sometimes she get's too emotionally invested in a discussion and starts swearing and behaving inappropriately, which isn't a normal boss-employee dynamic. She definitely feels like she is more than an employee. Especially after she gets more and more invested in her work on the case. She asks for raises and manipulates Ed into giving her her job back as a result of her entitled attitude.

4.   I agree with Erin's perspective. Medical bills are very expensive in this country, especially for people without health insurance, like the majority of the community in question. She appealed to the emotions of the lawyers by saying "how would you feel if your spine was deteriorating?" Every human has experienced physical pain in some form, and it is a universal moral truth that it is wrong to injure other human beings. There was no way the attorneys could combat her argument without sounding like the jerks that they are.